


Cartoon Network Universe: Earth One - FusionFall

by RayO1



Series: Cartoon Network Universe: Earth One [1]
Category: Cartoon Network Universe: FusionFall
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alien Invasion, Crossover, Gen, Science Fiction, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-31
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-16 10:40:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 156,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28829781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RayO1/pseuds/RayO1
Summary: ENTER THE CARTOON NETWORK UNIVERSE LIKE NEVER BEFORE: Five years after an attempted invasion from another world, 16 year old Ben Tennyson meets with old friend Dexter McPherson, who now runs a technology corporation called Dexlabs Inc. He is asked to test out the new version of a time machine, but when someone screws it up, everyone on Earth is thrown into a war to save the universe.
Series: Cartoon Network Universe: Earth One [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2113854
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1: A Fusion Matter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold = Emphasis/Commentary
> 
> Italic = Emphasis/small memory moment
> 
> [] = Artificial Intelligence/Android Speech

**MAY 22 - 2014 - BELLWOOD SUBURBS - BEFORE THE INVASION**

He stared at the ceiling of his domain as he woke up from his deep slumber, with the first thoughts emerging in his mind being the hunger, the hunger that craved delicious meats and a great many other things, the hunger that would have to be forsaken in favor of the more prioritizing responsibilities before him. For he was no ordinary kid.

He was Benjamin Tennyson, 16 year-old kid with an abnormal tendency to forget responsibilities, especially a certain thing that he was _supposed_ to do today.

He looked up at the ceiling of his room, attempting to ignore his craving for the chili fries and smoothies. He tried to remember what was supposed to happen today, he knew it was important, and he knew it was something that he signed up for - a while ago. 'So what was it?' he asked himself. He tried to stay focused, but to no avail, he was too tired to wake up early. He tried looking at his watch to tell the time, only to remember that his watch couldn't tell time, it could only do _something else_.

Ben breathed one last time before he drifted off in to his sleep again; the thoughts in his mind recurring, what important thing was he supposed to do...at Dexlabs...today...

* * *

**FLASHBACK: JULY 15 - 2009**

"Ben! Get down here and help your cousin!"

"Why?" asked Ben, what was ever so rigorous about making normal food?

"Because you can't get any hot dogs if you don't help," his grandfather responded.

He paused for a moment. "Yeah it's totally worth it," the kid said.

Another day in the "normal" life of 11 year old Benjamin Tennyson. As if it were normal enough (if you know what that means) It was finally one of those days when his Grandpa Max was making normal food, no fried butterflies, no live maggots, no octopus eyes, just normal processed pig guts in a bun. He was lying on the roof of the Rust Bucket, letting the sun shine on his face. It actually made him want to sleep.

Just when he was finally was drifting off, a meteorite zoomed by and crashed into the woods, or at least what he could make out to be another meteor; he watched as it landed down in the forest...typical.

Well, on the bright side, it definitely didn't to crash on him.

"Aw shoot, just when I was having me-time," he complained to himself, he got off the roof and opened the RV door, ignoring Gwen reading, "Hey, I'll be back, 'kay Gramps?"

"Don't wander off too far." said Max.

"Yeah, sure." he responded, as if! As he walked into the woods, he readied his watch for what could have been a huge fight.

* * *

Confusion was the only thing that could come to his evolved mind as he looked through the telescope. More or less he feared whether what was coming was ever so hostile or not, but from the looks of it (quite literally) he mustn't take the chance of it being non-hostile. He saught to rule Earth, not destroy it. For he is Mojo JoJo, and he will save this planet from destruction, no matter the cost, no matter how many lives (he) must end.

"There is only one safe way to determine our chances though. _Sky Monkeys_! Prepare thyselves for takeoff!"

* * *

_Wrick Wrick_

Just another day in the lab...programming his giant, groundbreaking inventions. Nothing special. Actually he was getting his inventions ready for a public showing, in hopes of starting a technology corporation that can revolutionize the world. No big deal...

The yellow light began beeping, a news alert. The only thing was it was beeping rapidly...a _breaking_ news alert.

"Computress, please display this news report."

[Command denied; following priority directive: 'don't let anything distract me from my work!]

Dexter facepalmed at how stupid or arrogant he could be at sometimes. He never accounted for what could've been a world catastrophe.

"Authority overide, command change prompt 7." he said.

[Command denied; following priority directive: 'and do not let me even try to change my mind! I am to stay focused at all costs! Not unless my calendar says so!']

'Did Einstein ever have to deal with his own crap?' Dexter thinks to himself. He took out his phone and called the association that was sponsoring his "techfair" and asked for a rescheduling.

The good news was, they said OK! The bad news was...the next time he could display and distribute his inventions was in _five years from now_.

"(Sigh)... I'll take it," Dexter reluctantly said. He turned around to face his rather frustrating AI. "Okay, I have cleared my calendar...now can I see the news report?"

[Accessing recent media]

The screen showed that a mysterious asteroid had crashed near a small suburban town called Peach Creek. Government Officials were stating that the asteroid had an abnormal green glow coming from the inside, and they assumed that whatever it was, it was hostile. They were also calling in any local scientists to help investigate.

"And that's my cue." Dexter said while he hid a smile. "Computress, I shall be heading out. Get a pack ready just in case."

[Already done, sir.]

He casually took his pack and left the lab. As he walked out, he thought to himself 'Note to self: rewrite authority override system.'

* * *

News reports were all over the place, all about the same thing, unholy asteroids from outer space that glow green and do nothing for a full hour. SECT was all over it, citing one of these things in Peach Creek, another in Bellwood, and two in Townsville. Of course, they forgot about the huge one in Sector V. Classic SECT.

"Hey Two, anything so far?"

"Nothing yet. Hasn't been anything so far...so...Abby, how's your sister?"

"Sis' is cool," said Number Five, "she's into this weird phase where she uses weird phrases and then quotes them...how's the little guy?"

"Tommy is...well...Tommy, still trying to be a superhero, like me..."

"We ain't heroes, Numbuh Two."

"Well Tommy's pretty hell-bent on believing that stuff, and no matter what you do, you really can't change his opinion," Number Two said, "I think my mom is gonna go to an insane asylum if he keeps up with this stuff."

She chuckles at his joke, "Funny," she says, "So what do you think is in the meteor?"

"I don't know...probably another alien."

"Well yeah, 'course it's alien, but what do you think it's going to do when it comes out?"

"I really have no-"

"Fine, what do you think it's going to look like?" she asks.

"Oh, what if it's like one of those aliens in Bellwood?"

"They didn't exactly come out of meteors."

"Well then I can't decide." Number Two said. Just then, his phone began beeping, and after looking at it, he continues, "Anyway, does the rest of the KND know about the asteroid?"

Number Five sighed, this must have the fifth time he'd asked her this. " _No_ , they're having some trouble with their Wi-Fi."

"Well I just got a reply from Number One, apparently he just found out about the situation about this and he wants us to go down, take a look at the thing ourselves."

"Hold on...remind me again... where is Numbuh One?" she asked.

"He's with Kuki and Wally, 274 assigned them this weird mission in Nevada, something about this new base on a mountai-wait!"

Number Five glanced over to wherever Number Two was looking at. The asteroid was _finally cracking open_. Both operatives raised their weapons, awaiting whatever in hell's name they were going to see.

The asteroid split open, revealing a strange alien egg-like plant-blob that began growing, rapidly. The vines from its bottom began spreading, and the KND operatives started backing away from what they clearly didn't want to see.

The blob somehow spawned a green glowing creature with glowing red eyes and jagged mouths. They hesitated for a while, looking around with vicious glares.

"...Eww..."

"That...ain't right at all..."

After a few moments of hesitating, a KND operative came closer to the spawnling, shaking as he aimed his rifle at it. The creature looked at him in what seemed to be a mixture of caution and aggression, but they all knew it was nothing like that at all. As the operative took one step closer, small green tentacles began to _emerge from the thing's body_. It grabbed the operative's gun-

-and straight out took a _bite_ out of it-

-and then _disintegrated_ the remains of said gun...with another _touch_.

The operatives stood there in near shock as the unnatural organism began licking the dust that was once a weapon.

After a long moment of silence, an older operative spoke up, "Well, I'm out."

The spawnlings then began attacking the KND, they all started screaming, running as fast as they could (some actually running back to their homes, crying). Noticing the situation down there, Number Two and Five headed down and begin firing at the spawns (almost aimlessly). The spawns were hit, but they uncannily regenerated at every move. Realizing their weapons were absolutely useless, Two and Five immediately headed back to the treehouse, while still trying to fend off the spawns (with their useless weapons(such logic).

Number Two began trying to call in reinforcements, but something was jamming their comms. They were then, something that would make superhero fans faint took place...(without the superhero fans)

Pink and Blue lights entered the battle in a sonic boom, with all the spawns obliterated by the wind in the process, Two and Five stared at the remains (just a bunch of goo really) of their attackers, dumbfounded. Dumbfounded to the point where they didn't realize that they were being lifted up in the air.

They were just saved...by the Powerpuff Girls.

Coming back to reality, Five immediately blurted out "Two! You owe me $5!"

"What? Why?"

"Remember last week? You said that if we were held hostage by Mr. Boss or somethin' stupid, the PPG wouldn't save us!"

"Is this _really_ a time to talk-"

"'Like three ten-year old girls are ever going to want to save us!' So I bet you it was totally possible, here they are now, and now you gimme my money!"

Eventually, the two stopped their bickering out of exhaustion. The PPG got them safe on the ground afterwards. They then-wait, why were they exhausted?

"You two look bored."

"From your constant bickering." said Blossom, the pink one.

"Wait," said Number Two, "weren't there three of you?"

"There are, Buttercup is actually here in Bellwood, one of those things landed here too."

Number Two looked confused, "We're in Bellwood?"

"Yeah," said Bubbles, "you two have been at it for two straight hours."

Another loud boom is heard in the distance and suddenly, pieces of goo fall from the sky. As the puddles lay there, Buttercup (the green one) lands on the group with her glowing eyes fading. She walks towards the four as they stand there in...disbelief?

"Hey," she said, "What took you guys so long?"

"Don't try to pull off that trick!" said Blossom, "I can tell someone helped you out."

Buttercup's victorious grin faded a little.

"(Pause) Yeah, I had help..."

"Why didn't anyone tell me that we were having a party?" asked someone unseen, until everyone turned around. A flaming humanoid figure with an hourglass symbol on his chest appeared, his skin charred and broken apart like a magma rock in a volcano. He flew down and landed facing the PPG and the awestruck KND operatives. He touched his symbol and morphed into an eleven year old kid, "I would have brought chips!"

Awkward silence was everywhere. No one would have guessed that an alien was just an eleven year old human. Then again, they themselves existed, so there weren't that many surprises in store for them.

"Wait, you're a kid?" said Number Two in a rather disappointed fashion.

"This whole time, you've been a 10-year old? An innocent 10-year old who just put himself in harm's way?!" exclaims Bubbles.

"We're the ones who're s'possed to be helping kids, kid! Not you!" Number Five added.

"Oh excuse my _eleven_ year old being," replied Ben, then turning towards the two KND operatives, "were you expecting Chuck Norris? Also, you're two to talk, you don't have any frickin' powers to begin with!"

Behind all five of them, the puddles started to come together, literally. It began to materialize in a form that was as large as a buffalo. Ben noticed it and readied his watch, and the others followed with their own paraphernalia. But just as the blob was about to form, it got incinerated by a blast of plasma, leaving nothing but smoke and a bomb shadow. A boy appeared in a white lab coat with a strange set of glasses, holding a smoking futuristic gun; he was strapped to a white, compressible exoskeleton, which quickly decompressed into a small backpack.

Like that was nothing out of the ordinary...

Ben broke the moment of silence, "So is this a party or not?" he said, "'cause I swear, I can get chips like right now."

"Is this really the time for humor?" the boy said. He then calmly said to the pink one, "On your left by the way."

"Can we please stop with the dramatic and unexplained entrances, Dexter?" said Blossom, as she punched the monster on her left.

"Look, let us get out of the city, it is not safe at all." said the boy, "These creatures are going to continue to - respawn, and it doesn't look they won't be ceasing to do so any time soon."

Everyone looked at each other in agreement, then back at the boy. They immediately left the area. Little did they know that behind them, the blobs of goo that were scattered all over the street began inching towards each other, yet again, having fused into larger puddles and formed a large enough shape to look like how it did originally. It tried to move, or hop, but instead made a moaning sound out of pain. It could feel that the damage inflicted by that lab-coat boy was more effective than that of those girls or those KND operatives. Rather than attempting to build itself back up again, it made its way to the green egg that it had spawned from.

The compiled puddles allowed itself to be absorbed by the egg, just as a nearby security camera zoomed in.

* * *

"My name is Dexter McPherson," the boy said, "I'm a local scientist from Genius Grove. I was investigating one of these things in Peach Creek, and then-"

"Weird monsters came out?"

"Broke some tech?"

"Interrupted a very nice day?"

"Yep, a _very nice day!_ " said Dexter with much irritation in his voice, "Anyway, I barely came out of that attack, and as I was escaping I detected three more of these "eggs". When I went to their impact sights, they weren't spawning those creatures. But people were trying to harm it, it kept on regenerating!"

"Regenerating?" said Buttercup, "What are you talking about? I blew up the egg and it's not regenerating."

"I noticed. Obviously something's not right, I invite you all to my laboratory in Genius Grove, we can break down the situation there."

"This kind of enemy is nothing like we've fought before." said Buttercup, with an already tired sigh.

"Sure, and it is only going to get harder. If we continue to attack with simply brute force, we may just make this situation worse. We need a basic plan of response. Luckily, I've come up with one."

"Wait," said Bubbles, "you know how to defeat the monsters?"

"No, I do not know...yet," Dexter said, "but I have some theories, does that count?"

Everyone gave him a shrug, to which Dexter turned around, "Lovely! Remember, Genius Grove - Dexter's Lab! 11:00 AM, no more, _no less_!"

* * *

**PRESENT DAY: MAY 22 - 2014**

Dexter's Lab...

Dexter's Lab?

Dexlabs?

Dexlabs?!

'Oh crap!' He thought.

Ben swiveled his head to face his calendar, and saw in horror the big red 'X' that was scribbled over the the 22nd of May.

'OH CRAP!' He thought again.

The thought almost escaped him, he had volunteered for this...this experiment that he had signed up for that was being headed by his old friend. Ben facepalmed mentally for forgetting this extremely important event, especially one that was being hosted by a friend! He jumped out of bed the moment his eyes opened, the calendar behind him serving as a guilt-instilling reminder to his sub-conscience.

'Stupid, stupid, _stupid!_ ' Ben thought as he frantically got dressed out of his shorts and into his jeans. 'Of all the days to forget, why _now?! Why now?!_ ' He then turned to the clock above him. It marked 1:30 PM. Ben mentally facepalmed for the second time as he remembered that Dexlabs needed him by at the most 11:00 AM.

Realizing that he was two hours late, he left his room, having fully dressed, and dashed through the living room. Grabbing the toast from the kitchen and running as fast as he could. He would just use his watch and transform into XLR8, but that would be overkill...and stupid. He ran out the door in a state of undress, his jacket and shoes missing from his chest and feet. Realizing he was partially naked, he quickly ran back inside and fixed the mess, now equipped with his signature green racing jacket and shoes.

"GottagoI'mverylateloveyoubye!" Ben said to his mother as he was running out the door frantically. Once he left, his mother continued preparing eggs and sausages in a monotone fashion. "Don't run in the hallway dear!" she said quietly, minutes after he had already left.

Ben was at this point running for his life, he was gasping for air as his body began anaerobically respiring. He saw the bus stop ahead, and saw the Dexbot heading back in. Oh no! This meant it was leaving, leaving and not coming back for at least 2 hours! It meant he'd have to run at least another mile to get to Tech Square.

Run another _mile._

"N-NO!" He exclaimed as he reached for his watch.

* * *

**FLASHBACK: JULY 15 - 2009**

The streets were chaotic, people being chased by these slime monsters, police trying to fend them off, police running away from them; it was all in panic, and no one had a clue what exactly was going on.

Back in Genius Grove, all those who witnessed the alien attacks were gathered in Dexter's lab, along with three other KND operatives that the Two and Five had called over. They were bickering, unsure of what to do based on the creatures they've fought individually, and it was annoying the hell out of Dexter.

"I say we freeze em!"

"How about a stun ray?"

"Throw 'em in the ocean?"

"No! We need an anti-goo machine!"

"No weapons with flaws, Number Three!"

Luckily enough, the back-and-forth arguments was a scratch to Dexter, compared to the gushing gash before him. These bio-machines, or "terrafusers" as Dexter called them now, were getting larger and their spawning rate was rising dramatically, and surprisingly no one was as tense as Dexter thought they might have been.

Dexter was shocked at his findings, he had been monitoring the crash sites he visited, and the terrafusers that he co-ordinated on the way to Bellwood were showing things he had never seen before. He then looked at the the rest of his research, trying to find a connection. Finally, emerging from a deep thought came an enthusiastic: "Everyone! I have a plan!"

Everyone, as if a charm had been placed, finally stopped arguing as they heard those exciting words. They looked at him fiercely, as if they were waiting to leave the lab and stop the craziness happening outside.

"Having compiled enough data based on police reports, specimen sampling from SECT departments, recent geological and gravitational telemetry, and of course our own eyes, there is a way to be-"

"Dexter! Your plan won't make sense without us knowing, at all what those things even are!" said Blossom, rather irritated that one hour of planning came down to nothing but orders, "Why are you keeping us in the dark?!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I have been listening in on your arguments, and you all seem to want to take these things head-on, no?"

"Yep! There shouldn't be much sweat, right? Just give me a sec with those blobs and those things will be history..."

"Ben! You're not helping!"

"Why so? Sounds great to me!"

"Buttercup! You're not helping either!"

"Look, there is an ugly truth to all of this, a scientific explanation; I highly doubt that any one of you will understand the findings, and we _are_ on the clock here."

"'hat's a klutz-way ta think, y'know," responded Number Four, "'s he always like this?"

"Dexter, look," Number Five said as she gazed into Dexter's eyes, or what she could make out of them behind those thick goggles, "It don't help to just take orders! We need information before we'all just start shootin' at each-other."

"Number Five is right, Dexter," concurred Number One, "without knowing what these aliens are actually doin-"

"All right! All right! I'll show you the ugly truth if you do so please!" Dexter shouted across the room, not having the slightest visible change in emotion, aside from a small twitch around his shoulders. He took a deep breath, and continued.

"The spawns, to begin with, are obviously of extraterrestrial origin. What was more interesting was the reason behind their bizarre physiology. I collected a sample of one of the spawns from our encounter in Peach Creek and examined it closely. Check this out, this is at 4500x magnification. Computress!"

With a flash of light, many people in the room were stunned at what they saw, and many people were plain confused. Though based on the content shown, it could be safely said everyone fit into either one of these two categories. The picture was fuzzy, with small grey elements that could be made out through the green background shown. Everyone could figure, notwithstanding how much they knew in the field of science, that the image was magnified 4500 times, which should have captured the atomic level. Keeping this knowledge in mind, a question was quickly raised.

If this was the atomic level, then where were the atoms?

"Dexter, this is at 4500x, right? So are we at the subatomic level?"

"I understand the confusion, but surprisingly, it is not. This _is_ at the atomic level."

"So-"

"Where are the atoms? I looked deeper into what was missing, I even checked to see if the microscope used to take this photograph was malfunctioning, or if its view was too narrow. But as it appears, the microscope isn't broken. Instead, it appears it is apart of the creatures' greater biological functions. Simply put, they don't _have_ atoms."

"This is probably Gwen's work on me talking, but Dexter? I don't think I need to be smart, or even need to transform into Grey Matter, to know that that is 'biologically' impossible." said Ben, showing an uncharacteristic intrigue in the subject matter. "Atoms are needed for pretty much anything. Without atoms, there's...well, there ain't anything! But last I checked those things are touching and attacking folks like there's no tomorrow.

"Ben, you being the alien expert here, do you believe this to be of terrestrial origin?"

"Uhh...no?"

"So why do your aliens from that watch of yours, which have powers they should not really have, refuse to defy that logic?"

"Hey, don't judge the alien powers, it's complicated!" Ben said with shame, "anyway, sure, this world is a pretty amazing place. But this world, much like every living thing on it, is made of atoms. Duh!"

Dexter stared at Ben and struggled to comprehend the sarcasm in his voice, and let out a huge sigh. "To get to the point, those smudges you see on the screen are - barely atoms themselves, they are just protons, neutrons, and nothing more. I too was shocked at this discovery, it wasn't scientifically possible for protons and neutrons to exist outside a formal state of matter. That was when I had to dig deeper, and I found this," he displayed another image on the screen, the same as the last, with more focus on the green background. "They are being held together primarily by this foreign substance, which I've detected uses a magnetic frequency to do so."

Bubbles continued to draw blank expressions at Dexter's theory. "What exactly is giving off 'magnetic frequencies' here?"

Dexter looked at her with intuition as he flipped to the next image, this one a satellite image of the Bellwood crash site. "From what I can tell, it is a nanocomposite polymer electrolyte chain that has been laced around the specimen like some kind of force field. What that means for the creatures is that it acts as a healing agent, as well as an assimilating property that allows them to absorb other matter. It could explain how they are able to draw themselves back together even after a powerful blast. But here is where it gets scary. Remember how we saw the creatures get absorbed by the terrafuser? Right, we weren't there. You see, I hacked into the security cameras near the area of our fight, and the terrafuser stitched itself together as if Frankenstein was performing self-surgery. It drew back the dilapidated creatures, or whatever was left of them." That came to everyone's shock, especially Buttercup's. "Well, I found that it was doing that by using a variant of ionic energy. I rigged up an algorithm to trace that energy back to its source." Dexter pushed another button, only this time, there was no other image. The image of the crash site zoomed out to reveal a map of the tri-state area. "From the looks of it, the creatures that spawned from these machines were the ones who _gained_ _that ionic energy_ , as if there is some kind of psychic link between them, and it is transmitting to this epicenter," he pointed to the area labeled **TERRAFUSER ALPHA** , it was at Goat's Junkyard "where the ionic energy is charging up, getting ready for something..."

[Foreign Objective: Unknown - but we can be certain it is to no good cause], Computress's voice rang through the lab like bells to ears, startling everyone present, [Our operation is to destroy the core before the ionic build-up of energy; time remaining: uncertain - hypothesis: we need to move fast]

Once the AI finished, Dexter followed with a strategy, "Police initially tried to destroy one of the machines by using a weapon designed by Mandark Industries; around that same time, spawning activity in the other areas came to a short standstill before booting back up. What this could mean, presumably, is that these four terrafusers work as one, like a machine. **TERRAFUSER BETA** , **TERRAFUSER GAMMA** , and **TERRAFUSER DELTA** are like the processors: subdue them, and the machine is rendered vulnerable. So when that chance comes, we strike, at the same time, with our combined forces and my latest invention!" Dexter proceeded to display design sheets for what could best be described as a giant cannon, only less cannon-like.

"I call it an electro-pulse cannon. Simply put, it can charge raw ions of imagination energy with an electromagnetic pulse, which also magnetizes the particles and gives them the ability to separate matter constructs, such as our green little friends here, and it delivers it with a powerful concussive blast." Dexter said, with a level of conviction and pride that was not seen often due to his stoic nature.

"Imagination Energy? How do you know these things can be hurt by Imagination Energy?" Number Two asked. He knew Imagination Energy had lots of applications; its the stuff that creates imaginary friends, and can purify acidic reactions that could cause lots of damage, but to weaponize it? Use it as ammo against an alien force with _very_ similar qualities? It sounded like fighting fire with fire, which - instead of working out in the end - really just creates _more_ fire.

"Because I have seen the damage imagination energy can caused upon these creatures. Take a closer look at the security feed from earlier on. Observe the puddles of the goo as they try to reform." Dexter tapped on the image and, like a touchscreen it zoomed in. The creature, as it was struggling to piece itself together, was groaning in agony.

"Whoah!"

"Talk about pain, huh..."

"Where exactly do you get your imaginary energy from?" Number One inquired.

"A place called Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, where runaway or outgrown imaginary friends can stay for god-knows-how-long. They allowed me to collect data on imagination energy for research purposes, and then I designed a transducer that could store this type of energy; we could use it to amplify the blast created by the EPC, and make sure that it finishes these things for good...if I had it."

As if they were let down, everyone looked at Dexter with confusion, and later aggression. Number Four decided to break the silence by voicing everyone's concerns.

"WHADDY'A MEAN YA DON'T HAVE IT?!"

"Where the heck is it now?!"

"I still say we freeze them!"

"ALL OF YOU, BE QUIET!" shouted Dexter, "I have not lost it, I donated it to the Townsville Science Center, but it was stolen recently by none other than-"

Blossom knew immediately who he was speaking of, "-Mojo JoJo..."

"We've heard the news reports about that..." followed Ben. "We didn't know it was yours though..."

Dexter paused for a second, thinking of what to do next. The solution, like an electric charge, quickly came to his mind. "So we organize a strike team, to infiltrate Mojo's laboratory, and extract the transducer." He turned his head towards the Powerpuff Girls. "Girls, you know Mojo the best, and have probably been in his lab countless times before. You three will lead the strike team. Ben and Number Two will be right behind you." He pointed to the two, as the former readied his watch while the latter adjusted his goggles.

"If you want, we can call the professor to help you." said Blossom

"He's one of the leading minds in blowing stuff up...or was it chemistry? I don't know, just get him." followed Buttercup

"If Professor Utonium agrees to help, then of course you may." responded Dexter, "Now, Kids Next Door, I want you and any reserve operatives securing the areas under attack, specifically the site of Terrafuser Alpha."

"Cover up our existence after this rubbish and we just might!" said Number One. The KND wouldn't have allowed them to operate out in the open like this anyway, especially around adult police officers, their secrecy was paramount here.

Dexter had no choice but to nod in agreement. He was stepping, and possibly interfering with everyone's own little worlds here. But this threat was just too big, it was the only way - to bring them all together, to team up - to stop those spawnlings. But even as he saw everyone leave the room, Dexter knew that it wasn't enough.

"We probably need more someone more familiar in designing weapons, two heads are better than one, after all." said Dexter to himself, and without hesitation, he continued.

"I'm calling Mandark."

* * *

**PRESENT DAY: MAY 22 - 2014**

Ben couldn't help but to sit down. He nearly missed his bus to Tech Square, which was actually leaving just as he was coming out of the house. He panted as he noticed that his omnitrix was powering down, making the familiar beeps and the eventual flashing green light reverting him back to his human form. The only other occupant was a man of age 40, with a body practically comprised of muscles. He wore a black v-neck t-shirt under a black flannel, a standard pair of jeans, and ray-brands that covered his eyes; he sported slicked back golden hair, that was pulled up in a cartoonish fashion.

"Heya! Howyadoin?" asked the man.

"I'm fine, thanks Johnny." Ben found himself

"Well, hey now! Don't get too sleepy!" said Johnny, in a hip and active voice that didn't suit his age at all. "You musta been in a rush to come up here as a freaky freaky alien! Any coolio like you must be in some cool stuff to do."

[Johnny Bravo: You have arrived at: Park County, Suburbs Area - Bellwood City, California - Have a safe, and pleasant stay]

"Later kiddo!" waved Johnny. Ben waved right back.

Johnny Bravo may not have been a good role model, but his advice was worth every ounce of boredom, especially for the simple subjects. Ben reminded himself to stay awake, keep himself fresh. He volunteered to do this, he had the responsibility of so. Also, not to mention, he had never been to Tech Square before.

Who knows how that place would be like?

* * *

**FLASHBACK: JULY 15 - 2009**

"I've never actually bothered asking this 'til now, how exactly is there a volcano smack-dab in the middle of a city?!"

"Honestly, I don't have a clue," answered Blossom, "apparently it was for marketing and tourism purposes, but that's all just stupid-talk. But never mind that right now, let's finish what we came here to do."

Number Two didn't intend to use a hyperbole for his question, because it was kind of weird as to why an architect would build a city around an active volcano. That question had bothered the citizens of Townsville like a toothache, albeit an abnormally painless one. All most citizens could understand was not to go near it. They didn't think this because it was a volcano, but rather because on top of it was the lair of Mojo JoJo, the most frequent and fearsome foe of the Powerpuff Girls.

"Some evil genius," said Ben (as Upgrade) with an obvious level of sarcasm, "guy can't even program a half decent security system!" Ben's sarcasm had layers of truth to it. In the world they lived in, with not only three super-powered little girls, but also aliens, secret organizations, and boy geniuses, you'd think he would widen his focus to those threats too.

The moment the door opened, everyone readied themselves for a stun-ray blast, only to be disappointed. To their surprise, the laboratory was dark, pitch dark. They expected Mojo to call them out from the shadow, but the eerie and quiet nature of the clearly abandoned lab was reflected through the crickets chirping in the background.

"Looks deserted," said Ben, "must be away."

"Yeah, Mojo isn't always up to tyranny, if I can remember." said Bubbles. "Sometimes you could even catch him at the mall."

"Aw shoot, I was lookin' forward to some _monkey business_..." said Number Two.

"Ugh..." retorted Buttercup, just as she had found the light switch, and within milliseconds the lab illuminated, revealing all of Mojo's instruments: his giant telescope, numerous control panels, an "anti-crime lab" (whatever that was), among other things. Finding the device would be like finding a single LEGO brick in a child's messy room.

"Where do you think Mojo went?" Blossom asked.

"Who the heck cares? Lets just find this Transducer and get outta here!" replied Ben, who transformed back into his original form. of course, he was underestimating the amount of thought and searching it would take to find the device, though. As everyone started searching, he checked his watch to see if it was out of charge, as his Upgrade transformation was only brief. He transformed into Grey Matter soon after.

* * *

"You sure about this, Dexter?"

"Positive." Dexter said to his rival and friend. "Raw ions of imagination energy with an electromagnetic pulse, should be able to destroy these things and leave them in the dust."

"Splendid, and you need my help...why?"

"We both know the answer to that, Mandark, you are the best weapon designer that I know, and I know nothing in this field. You also know a computer's worth of information on ionization and matter formation, which is far more than I could ever hope to process."

"Yet you build a near-functional electro-pulse cannon. Although, I should say, the design is rather sloppy; its hardware is not efficient for firing concussive blasts like such. Luckily, it is nothing Mandark Industries can't retrofit." Mandark said, with a proud smile on his face, not much to the stoic Dexter. "Also, I looked through your calculations, and I could not help but notice that there is a missing variable."

"The missing variable is supposed to represent external matter from the outside atmosphere, such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, argon." said Dexter as he rolled his eyes. "It is then oxidized by the imagination energy. I have found that this form of power is capable of injuring these things."

"But perhaps you should add another variable." offered Mandark, "You should try to look into this: isolated anti-matter. It is twice as effective, and lord knows what that stuff can do with imagination energy, a source that can purify nearly anything.

Dexter crossed his arms, he was thinking of the offer. "Firstly, Simon, this isn't a business proposal, I'll be taking this regardless. Second, anti-matter can't co-exist with living matter, it goes against the laws of the universe. The only way that could happen is if there was a substance that could create a stabilizing agent-" Dexter stopped himself, realizing that the imagination energy was _already_ a stabilizing agent. Theoretically, a concentrated addition of it would be just enough to allow the matter and anti-matter to co-exist. Furthermore, in layman's terms, whatever of the matter and anti-matter wouldn't be stabilized _would_ be allowed to react, thus allowing for a more concussive blast and possibly extra firepower. "Oh...I see now."

"So? Could it work?" asked Mandark. "Honestly, I have no idea, I haven't retrofitted any of my technology with an anti-matter based power source before, your cannon is my test trial, so I'm legitimately asking, will it work?

Dexter gave no reply. He had a strong sense of integrity, one that he wasn't fond of losing, especially to Mandark, who founded his own company at age 12, while Dexter, age 11, was lying in the dirt.

"Throw aside the integrity-trash, Dexter. I may not have tested it, but I always know when I'm right, and so do you" said Mandark. Dexter huffed a bit out of frustration, sometimes it was like Mandark could read his mind. His frustration was interrupted by a small beep. It was an alert from Computress, someone was at the door.

Dexter looked at Mandark with a shrug, and walked out of his lab and down to his living room to open the door. A man stood there with an exhausted look on his face; he wore a white lab coat underneath a shirt and tie.

"Excuse me? Is this...uh," the man looked at the piece of paper more closely "McPherson Residence? I'm sorry, I'm just looking for a Dexter McPh-"

"You've come to the right place, Professor Utonium." Dexter said.

The Professor took a long sigh. "Oh thank god. I'm sorry if you waited, my girls forgot to give me a proper address." said Utonium, straightening his tie and fixing his hair, erasing the nervous impression he was giving off a few moments earlier. "What do you need me for exactly?"

"Your daughters recommended we ask you for advice on the biochemistry of a substance we have come across." said Mandark, who revealed himself to the Professor, "Your thoughts would be nice to see if we need to make any changes to our plans."

"Thanks, but they aren't my daughters." Utonium replied, ignoring the confused look on both Dexter and Mandark's face. He then turned to Dexter, "But shouldn't you be able to do it? The girls tell me you're much smarter than I am."

"Yes I am," said Dexter with a level of affirmation and confidence that made the Professor cringe. He had expected Dexter to be much smarter than him, but he also expected Dexter to be a bit modest, "But I have no focus in my field of science, whereas you do. Your knowledge in biochemistry can help make sure we are making all the necessary calculations among other things. You _are_ needed, sir."

 _There_ it was...

With a deep breath, Utonium asked: "What's the current situation?"

"The girls are accompanied by a few others on a mission. They are retrieving an imagination energy transducer from Mojo JoJo's laboratory. They should be okay."

* * *

"We are NOT OKAY!" thought Blossom, "We are NOT OKAY!"

Blossom was screaming in frustration on the inside. She was still trying to understand how the spawns found the team so quickly. They were actually hiding behind wooden desks while the spawns were regurgitating explosive matter at them. It was actually surprising that the wooden tables were durable enough to protect them so well. Blossom could see that the kid with the watch, Ben, was getting extremely impatient. He jumped up (then crouched back down as his head nearly got blasted off) with much futility.

"Why aren't we being useful?! Let's take them on now!" shouted Ben.

"We can't! We still don't know where the transducer is! If we just throw stuff, we could accidentally break it!"

"Well I don't know how playing duck is any better!"

Blossom hated to admit it, but the kid was right, and her poor decision making deadlocked them into hiding, in little to no position to move at all. She was so stupi-no, never mind that now. They had a mission. But still, how were they going to do it at all if they were stuck here?

"What about a diversion?!"

"That's the oldest trick in the book! They won't ever fall fo-" Blossom tried to continue, but halted upon hearing a sound all too familiar to her: lasers. She looked at Bubbles, who hadn't moved a bit, and found the usual instead. Buttercup was firing her heat vision randomly at the spawns, to which they retreated a little.

"Buttercup! What are you doing?!"

"The only thing I can do! Make a sweet-looking diversion!" replied Buttercup, much to everyones' confusion. Then they realized that one of them was missing from the scene.

Number Two kept on searching for the transducer, with much irritation; if he knew what it looked like (which he did), this job would be a whole lot easier. Not to mention, but his searching space was limited to the area behind their makeshift fort. Good thing the monkey kept all his goodies in the back. That made Two think: Mojo must have stolen it for a reason, or why would this stupid situation be happening right now. 'Where could he have put it?' he thought. Sometimes, he wishes it was easier on him, like it was for Ben, who was able to hack into the security systems with a single touch. Better yet, Ben got the luxury of having to claim that he should widen his security features for others.

Wait a minute...

Two realized that maybe security had more to do with it. Mojo seemingly never did care to protect his lab from other super-powered people. He was so obsessed with his own ego that he had only three targets in mind. Mojo's only true enemies, the ones he would look out for the most. The ones...that could break into his lab at any moment without much help from an alien shapeshifting hero. So it's real easy for the Powerpuff Girls to break in to his lab, like crooks breaking in with a crowbar, but for protection reasons...

...wouldn't it be best to have a gun in hand against the crooks?

With that, it dawned on Two. The transducer had to be exposed, kept out in the open for quick and careless use. It just had to! He searched the 'anti-crime lab'; nothing. He looked for a secret door; nothing. Sliding panel; nothing.

Behind the megalomaniacal poster of Mojo; something.

The panel with the poster opened upon sensory revealing another panel inside. At last, he finally found it! It was in a glass box, labeled _'In case of Powerpuff Girls'_.

Of course...

The glass quickly lifted, allowing the transducer to be taken. He took the slightly vibrating device and yelled "Guys! I found it!"

"Finally!" shouted Ben, as he transformed into Four-Arms, those lovely words were like bells to his ears. "TIME TO THROW STUFF!"

The eleven-year old tetramand kicked back the somehow still-standing wooden tables back with full force, crushing most of the spawns on contact. He then charged into the crowd of spawns like a football player on adrenaline while a group of spawns made their way towards Number Two. The KND operative backed himself into a corner, sporting a fearful posture, which he was quickly relieved of thanks to Bubbles. The Powerpuff girl took him by the arm and hoisted him into the air, giving him a clear scope of the entire area.

Blossom, being the more proactive type, flew back to avoid any damage. She then drew in a lot of air, and called upon her ice breath to keep the spawns at bay. She did so knowing full well that there attacks were merely to hold them off. They didn't have any ion cannons or stuff like that. Ultimately they needed to stall them or damage them enough to get out of the lab, and make sure to secure the transducer...

...unless the transducer was exactly what they needed.

Meanwhile, Two and Bubbles seemed to be fairing well, but not well enough. Bubbles was shooting repeatedly at the spawns with her heat vision, but it was becoming clear that her eyes were tiring as she fired less and less powerful beams, catching Two's attention. Grabbing his R.A.Z.O.R gun from his back-pocket, the operative began firing unprotected, and sharp, utensils from a piece of string as he was kept hovering above ground. "That was a close _shave_!" he said, much to Bubbles's giggles.

"I will end you!" retorted Ben, with much annoyance in his voice.

"You talking to me or the spawn-things?"

"You wanna find out?!" said Ben, mashing all four of his fists together and cracking his knuckles, much to the sheepish smile on Two's face. Before Ben could go any further, he is stopped by Blossom.

"Not now!" She said while turning around "I have an idea! Number Two, pass the transducer to me!"

Number Two hesitated to give the transducer, not knowing what she was going to do with it, but whatever it was, it was probably something smart. He tossed it in to Blossom, who threw her fingers into strings of movements as if they were knitting strings of yarn. As she tinkered with the device, the spawns grew closer. They were accelerating towards the group of ten year-olds at a speed seen only in scary scenes in horror movies. Suddenly, Blossom held the transducer up, and with a flash of light and one shockwave later, the spawns were violently propelled backwards, reverting back into the goo they were made of.

The redheaded Powerpuff looked back to see her new friends' faces filled with delight and relief.

"Did...we win?" Blossom asked sarcastically.

* * *

**PRESENT DAY: MAY 22 - 2014**

[Ben Tennysonn: You have arrived at: Tech Square, Downtown Area - Siyenn City, California] said the voice on the bus, which woke Ben as fast as XLR8, [Have a safe, and pleasant stay]

Ben made his way off the bus, nearly tripping and falling off the platform-based, window-less bus that was about 20 feet above ground. He wasted no time in leaving the bus station and heading straight to the center of Tech Square, where a Dexlabs employee was waiting impatiently on the grand staircase to their magnificent headquarters.

"Ben! We've been waiting practically all day for you!"

"Stuff it, Carl!" retorted Ben as he walked up the stairs to Dexlabs Headquarters. As he made his way through the laboratory, he rushed to the red-headed scientist tinkering on his computer. Ben, reduced to a tired, panting mess, fell to his knees to catch his breath. Once he did, he raised his head to see a figure around his height. He had red curly hair, black thick-rimmed goggle-like glasses, and a black turtleneck sweater with black slacks and matching black dress shoes, and a white belted lab coat. It was none other than Dexter McPherson, CEO and Top Scientist at Dexlabs, Inc.

"Hey..." said Ben, "I'm sorry I'm late, Dexter."

"No need to apologize, Ben." said Dexter, turning his head around, "We've been waiting for you."

* * *

Ben looked around the lab of Dexlabs a bit, always admiring its advanced look, advanced technology, advanced everything, really. It struck him as signs of the world getting more peaceful. Hopefully when that could happen, he would finally be able to hang up the watch. As he walked around the lab with Dexter, he saw most of the scientists and engineers glaring at him with looks that could kill...him.

"Of course, as always, thank you for volunteering for this important time travel experiment." said Dexter, with a degree of sympathy, "The number of people who refused to go on this little trip was unbelievable."

"Yeah, you'd think the words 'time' and 'travel' would be a little more - you know."

"Yeah, I do know." said Dexter, "So how is life?"

"It's alright I guess," Ben replied with little confidence, "I got an upgrade for the Omnitrix..."

"Really?"

"I actually haven't unlocked it yet, but based on what I heard about it, I'm calling it ultimate mode."

"Do you feel you need it? You're already doing fine as you go now." said Dexter, to Ben's appreciation. "Back on the topic at hand. Have you ever gone time-traveling before?"

"Yeah, once," said Ben, "but it just turned out to be an alternate reality, and a stupid one too..."

At that moment, Dexter pressed a button that made his glasses look flashy, to which he turns around, "if that is what you are concerned about, then you signed up for the right experiment."

"What was that?" Ben asked.

"What was what?"

"What you just did?"

"Monologuing?"

"No, the glasses thing."

"Ah yes, it is a small app that makes my glasses flash without any dramatic lighting. It makes me feel more ingenious than I already am!"

Ben looks at his long-time friend with a long face, and soon after a long sigh. "No, it really doesn't." If he was so ingenious why is he still a socially awkward idiot? "You've been hanging around Blossom too much, man."

"Evidently not. Like you, she and I have not spoken for a while. As a matter of fact, it has been a while since I saw any of you, until now of course." Dexter said, with a small smile on his face, one that couldn't be made out neither from afar or up close. "As I was saying, our invention is not an ordinary time-traveling device. The machine you are about to enter has been designed specifically to tap into this timeline's chrono-keys. Meaning if our theory of fate is real, it can take us to the real future, our future. Of course, this is all an experiment, we do not know for certain until the theory has been proven."

That last bit threw Ben off a bit, but from the sound of it, it was going to be one hell of a ride. He was so enamored with the experiment, that he failed to notice the small creaking sound of a door, and near-mute tip-toeing.

* * *

**FLASHBACK: JULY 15 - 2009**

[Dexter, the drone you have commissioned is now arriving at its destination - terrafuser charge-up: 87%] said Computress through the P.A.

"Oh no...Professor, what's your progress?"

"Just working out the kinks in this anti-matter adapter that I've rigged up to keep the stuff flowing." Utonium responded, "What about the girls? Are they safe yet?"

"Safe and sound, Professor!" said a voice from afar. Utonium let out a deep breath of relief. "and with one intact imaginary energy transducer!"

"Mojo wasn't there for some reason," said Number Two, "but there are spawns that are currently headed our way."

"We'll hold them off here! Get to Goat's Junkyard and meet up with the KND before it is too late!" Mandark said. But the Junkyard was miles from here, Blossom thought. They'd have to teleport if they were to get there in time.

"Back to the S.C.A.M.P-" Number Two tried to say.

"Not enough time! Head into that prototype teleporter! Now!" said Dexter with a terrifying sense of urgency, though that wasn't what was actually terrifying for the others. He did say 'prototype' _teleporter_ , right?

As they boarded the pad, Dexter began operating the control panel, and placed his hand on a lever, not waiting a moment's time for anyone's approval. With a flash of light and intense machinery noise, they were gone.

"Dexter, you continue to do things that scare the living hell out of me." said the Professor.

"Oh, do not be so over dramatic! I tested it once...on my sister's Rainbow Monkey plush." replied Dexter.

"Did you test it with organic material?!"

It took a moment for Dexter to understand what the Professor was referring to, which in response he widened his eyes in fear. "O-Of course, it was...uh...just now?"

* * *

"Hold the line, Sector V! We ain't out of the woods yet!" said Number Five.

"We surround the terrafuser-thing and make sure no creepy alien gets past us!" said Number One.

"Remember your blamblam maneuvers!" added Number Three.

Suddenly, a flash of light appeared behind the terrafuser, noticed by Number Three. Out of that light came Number Two, the Powerpuff Girls, and that kid with the watch. In Blossom's hand was a large, cylindrical device that was pulsating from something inside.

"Oh boy, I might hurl!" Ben said with excruciating pain in his stomach, so much so that he was clutching it tightly. He retreated to a corner to release the vomit, much to the others' disgust.

"Take it somewhere else man!" exclaimed a KND Operative.

* * *

"Hey Coop? You hear somethin'?"

"Yeah I did Jamie...you cryin' like a little girl after I beat your ass in 'Destructo CHALLENGE!'"

"...You never let me have anything!"

Little did the two slobs in the RV know that the sound outside was a destructive battle, that was making even a junkyard look dilapidated. In short, the battle between the spawns and the heroes was intense. Blossom and Buttercup rushed to fly in, and both swiftly gave a devastating uppercut to a spawn, all while still having the transducer in hand and unharmed. Ben transformed into Stinkfly and immediately began spraying the spawns with toxic waste, while the rest of the heroes fought the spawns with more traditional methods.

"Hey, Blossom was right! Freeze Rays are cool!" said Number Two, as he fired his freeze ray at the spawns, and once at the terrafuser.

"Does he ever **shut up**?!" asked Ben (as Diamondhead) as he kept punching the terrafuser.

Number Five gave a small chuckle, "Ha! No way! Hey, it looks like our strategy is working!" Number Five pointed to the Terrafuser slowly decaying. It was being deprived of the ionic energy that the spawns were collecting, and with the damage it was getting every now and then it was failing to hold itself together. Number One, however, looked a tad bit confused.

"Hey, I just realized. If all of us are here, who's distracting the-"

Number One's inquiry was interrupted by a sharp sonic sound from his belt. Someone had hacked KND transmissions, and their voice came from the walkie talkie. "Rest assured Nigel, my Mandroids are handling Terrafusers Beta to Delta right now. There is currently one hovering above the junkyard you are positioned at. It has been loaded, and is ready to fire, but we need the transducer inserted into the EPC first! It's being held by my Mandroid above the junkyard!"

Number One realized what needed to be done, and quickly gave the hand signal to his comrades to take over for him. He went over to find Blossom, who apparently had the device last.

"Blossom!" shouted Number One, getting the Powerpuff Girl's attention. "I have orders from that Mandark fellow! You need to insert the device into the cannon, it's up in the sky with a robot!" Blossom nodded in response, and made her way up in the air.

She spotted a drone, holding an immensely large cannon, and figured nothing but the obvious. She went over, transducer ready and pulsing, and looked for a plug in or something for the cannon to utilize the contents of the transducer.

After moments of searching, she found a small button, that she clicked, revealing a secret patch frame. She couldn't help but blush, she loved all that mystery stuff. And with the small click, the cannon was loaded and ready.

* * *

**PRESENT DAY: MAY 22 - 2014**

"So..." Ben paused, since most of Dexter's experiments normally caused him to violently puke, "...this is safe. Right?"

"Do not judge things by mere looks, Ben." Dexter responded. "Also, please sit down."

Ben took a moment to notice his confined space. It was a large container with a single chair for his leisure.

"Okay, so before we begin, I'm going to need you to manually input your personal profile into the system." Dexter said, "Stand by, and I will bring it up on your monitor." Ben found himself before a large holographic interface asking him to type in his name. Wondering where to type his name, a holographic keyboard appeared, almost as if on que. He willingly typed in his information, including name, hair color, eye color, and date of birth.

"Now let the machine take a quick bio-scan of you to affirm that you are "Benjamin Kirby Tennyson"...your middle name is 'Kirby'?"

"I liked the video games, okay?" said Ben, with a hint of embarrassment.

Dexter shrugged it off and returned his attention back to the monitor. "Excellent, your bio-scan is nearly complete. While that is finishing, let us run a communications test. Computress?"

Even from inside the capsule, Ben could hear that ever-so-familiar voice on the P.A. [Communication servers: operational - I will be able to converse with the subject upon arrival in the future]

A voice from outside his view from the window called Dexter, "temporal flux-charge initiated, doctor."

"Affirmative." Dexter said, then turning back to Ben, "Dr. Xyrespace means that the energy source we are using can create temporal fluxes in time, like holes in a blanket, that allow you to travel swiftly and easily. It is charging that energy right now into the main engine, so you may feel a little bump."

Before he knew it, it became more than 'a little bump'. The place was practically shaking, and with no seat-belts anywhere, Ben had to hold the arms of his chair to keep himself from falling off. When the main engine calmed down a bit, and the "bumps" became more bearable, it was then, that Ben saw something out of place.

It was a girl; a little older than him and much taller than him too, in one hand a iced coffee, and in the other a pink handbag. She had a single ponytail held at the top of her head, that went down as far as her neck; she wore a white pair of spandex pants, as if she did yoga, and a magenta top, which was covered by a silk pink sweater that barely reached her elbows. On her face was a clueless smile that spoke all kinds of mischief.

She was also wearing ballet shoes...weird. But that uncanny observation became more alarming as he saw her tip-toeing behind most of the scientists, who were too enamored with what they were seeing to notice her.

"Uh, Dexter?"

"Not now, Ben. Prepare for launch!"

* * *

**FLASHBACK: JULY 15 - 2009**

"It is all ready, Dexter! Now fire the EPC!"

Just as before, Dexter hated admitting things to Mandark. But even he had to admit he was waiting for those words for a while now. Behind him, Professor Utonium fist-pumped in the air.

"Excellent work, Simon! Stand by to fire!"

The red translucent button began to beep like there was no tomorrow, which there probably wasn't if it wasn't pressed soon. Dexter, quick-thinking as always, did not hesitate to press the big red button. Funny, big red buttons were normally his bane (usually because of his sister), but here, there was no problem, no destruction, and no mayhem...

...so why the hell was it showing an error sign?!

 **[Electro-Pulse Cannon - Malfunction! Electro-Pulse Cannon - Malfunction!]** Computress repeated over and over again. Dexter's mind was racing, how could there have been an error?! All the calculations, the trajectories, the theories, the compositional matter matrix-

The compositional matter matrix!

"Dexter?" asked the Professor, "What happened?"

"Mandark happened!"

"This is not good" the Professor continued, as he saw the spawns finally overcoming the KND's defense barriers, and they merged back into the already glowing terrafuser, and before they knew it, the green egg shot out a magnificent green ray of light into the sky and beyond. Its light blinding everything in its path, and being bright enough for the whole world to see. It destroyed everything in its way, including the Mandroid holding the cannon, and a passing-by plane.

The latter of the two quickly got the attention of the girls, and Blossom looked at both Bubbles and Buttercup. With one small glare, they knew what they had to do. They quickly rushed away from the battle scene, while Blossom rushed down to get the cannon before its permanent destruction. However, Blossom couldn't help but notice...it was _really heavy!_

Meanwhile, back in Genius Grove, Dexter was tracing the problem and doing some small research on 'anti-matter', and he wasn't pleased with what he found "I should have known! That Mandark didn't do his research properly! Anti-matter may be compatible with normal matter with a stabilizing agent, but the result can reduce the number of necessary chemical reactions in order for it to exert said matter as a concussive blast! The thing interfering with that speed was the programming! So it resulted in failure!"

Utonium gasped at this revelation. "So you mean it-"

"-was not fast enough! Yet _he_ was fast enough to nearly sabotage this whole operation!" Dexter couldn't believe this, he expected more from Mandark, not this. "Professor, we need to extract that anti-matter before that terrafuser can cause anymore damage!"

"I'm working on it!" shouted the Professor in response. He picked up his cellphone while looking at the EPC blueprints, "Blossom! Are you there?"

" _bzzt-Y-yeah, I'm here!-bzzt-WHY DIDN'T THE CANNON WORK?!"_

"A small hiccup in our progress, but we can undo this!" said Utonium, "Alright, do you see a small hatch anywhere?"

" _bzzt-Yeah?-bzzt"_

"Open it, and you'll find a red wire, blue wire, and a purple wire. Are any of them damaged?"

" _No?_ "

"Fantastic, I need you to cut the red wire!"

" _What if it explodes in my face?_ "

"It won't, Blossom. Trust me!"

Blossom didn't think for a second; she cut the red wire and with all her strength, held the cannon up in the air and in range of the terrafuser, and with another beautiful, cascading light, the tables were turned. The electro-beam, utilizing ionic imagination energy, decimated the terrafuser, melting and destroying all the spawns, and ending it before it could do any more damage.

"Did we win now?"

* * *

**PRESENT DAY: MAY 22 - 2014**

Ben grew increasingly worried when the girl in the pink clothing shoes disappeared from his sight of vision.

"Launching in 3!"

Ben couldn't take the anxiety anymore. He just had to close his eyes.

"2"

Just get to one already! he thought to himself.

"1"

"Hey Dexter, what does this button do?"

Almost as if the world had ended before his eyes, Dexter froze in even his most minuscule of movements. He turned around slowly to notice the pink girl toying around with some of the emergency interface consoles. Ben had not seen a face like for a long time

"No, Deedee! NO!" He shouted, he made a jump for his stupid sister's button mashing.

But by the time he made it to the console...

...he was already too late.

[Warning! Temporal flux disabled! Warning! Temporal flux disabled!]

"Einstein's ghost, Deedee! Do you have any idea what you have done?!" shouted Dexter. Deedee looked a bit confused at first, not understanding what her little brother was talking about...until she heard pounding from inside the machine.

What did she do?!

Whatever she did, it shut off Ben's view, and darkened the inside of the capsule. He could hear Dexter's screams calling his name.

And then it was like there was nothing.

Pure peace and quiet.

And then came the motion.

Before he knew it, the time capsule was going at what seemed to be a supersonic speed. Ben clutched his chair, at a loss for words for what literally happened in one minute. Ben later thought of something, a memory from a time not so long ago.

Why did that come to mind of all memories?

..

..

**[TIME JUMP: ERROR]**

* * *

**FLASHBACK: JULY 15 - 2009**

"WE DID IT!" rejoiced Number Three.

"It's over!"

"Hallelujah!"

A small party at Genius Grove was hardly the definition. They, as a team, fought back an alien invasion! Sure, the kid with the watch may have done so lots more times, but not with a team, and definitely not a plan.

All was well, if it wasn't for the mini-explosions outside.

"No, no, no, no!" repeated Dexter. But to his favor, it wasn't what he expected it to be. There were no terrafusers or spawns outside.

No, spawns could not be easily confused with green-skinned monkeys...nor should their leader be either.

"MOJO!" shouted Buttercup, rushing to face him, "I should have known!"

"Known what?"

"It all makes sense, you created those aliens, you wreaked havoc all across the state! Why don't I just pound you?!"

"N-no...I was...not..."

Buttercup looked at her longest enemy without change in face, he could have been lying for all they knew! Dexter decided to intervene and question Mojo himself.

"Mojo! What did this to you?"

Mojo gave him no response, too weak to do so anyway, with multiple bruises and head traumas.

"He's been hurt, bad. You girls should get him to a hospital."

"B-blast...beacon!" Mojo said, surprising everyone. "It is c-coming, for us...all." He relapsed back into his weakened state, leaving everyone confused.

* * *

...

"Ugh..."

...

Eyes widened, ears still recovering from shock, he sat up in a dizzy state. The world was spinning endlessly around him, and Ben was failing to recover. Luckily, his brain was doing the job for him. He opened his eyes wide open, hopefully to regain focus, and he did. He looked around and noticed something was clearly wrong, aside from scattered metal from the destroyed time machine.

The grass was greener than usual.

Not in the sense that it looked healthy, as a matter of fact it looked the opposite, the grass he was sitting on looked like it was decaying rapidly, with the 'green-ness' coming from a strange glow under the soil. Ben looked up in shock as he came to his senses, but not before a voice rang in his ear.

[Error: You have been sent much farther into the future than Dexter intended]

Ben shivered at this eerie and unsettling information, and soon he regained his senses. He looked up, and what he saw, was more than startling.

The world around him was a battleground. Buildings were tipping over, the sky was green, and smoke filled the air from the flames that filled the ground. He saw countless terrafusers around him, much to his horror. In the center of it all, in the sky, was a giant fusion of planets, a planet covered in that goo, and it was coming straight for the earth.

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEVELOPER'S JOURNAL - Chapter 1: A Fusion Matter (A/N)
> 
> I think I owe you all a very heartfelt explanation for the three-year delay of this fanfiction. Even though not any of you have been leaving reviews, its still wrong of me to leave you all in the dark. So here it is.
> 
> I'm a writer, like, a real one...in training. I'm not your typical fanboy who writes because he ships two characters, or wants to see two franchises collide. I'm a fanboy who pays attention to his schoolwork and studies, and is currently striving to become a filmmaker. Yeah, I have a passion for filmmaking; right now, I have completed my second movie, and am currently editing a documentary on China. This may all sound like an extreme excuse to push fanfiction aside, but it ain't. Hopefully most of you people will understand that.
> 
> So my work outside this website is one factor. There is also the fact that I am getting better in my writing skills every day. So of course, when my writing becomes more sophisticated, it takes long amounts of planning, such as whether to use foreshadowing here, or use certain types of syntax to different levels of effect. I'm not looking to make this a short story here, I'm trying to introduce a shared universe here. That alone takes an impressive amount of work!
> 
> So, to wrap it up. I'm sorry for the wait. But make no mistake! I have every intention to finish this story, and go beyond. Plus, tonight is the night FusionFall Retro may get released, what lucky timing! Make sure to review, its important that reviews be made here for this story's sake and survival in this already large community. Thank you, and I'll see you in either FusionFall Retro tomorrow, or next time, next week in the next chapter! Later!
> 
> FusionFall and all associated characters are owned by Cartoon Network, Hanna-Barbera, Adult Swim, Turner Broadcasting, and all due owners of individual properties.
> 
> NEXT CHAPTER: A FUTURE WITH FUSE
> 
> -end transmission


	2. Chapter 2: A Future with Fuse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold = Emphasis/Commentary
> 
> Italic = Emphasis/small memory moment
> 
> [] = Artificial Intelligence/Android Speech

Eyes widened, ears still recovering from shock, he sat up in a dizzy state. The world was spinning endlessly around him, and Ben was failing to recover. Luckily, his brain was doing the job for him. He opened his eyes wide open, hopefully to regain focus, and he did. He looked around and noticed something was clearly wrong, aside from scattered metal from the time machine.

The grass was greener than usual.

Not in the sense that it looked healthy, as a matter of fact it looked the opposite, the grass he was sitting on looked like it was decaying rapidly, with the 'green-ness' coming from a strange glow under the soil. Ben looked up in shock as he came to his senses, but not before a voice rang in his ear.

[Error: You have been sent much farther into the future than Dexter intended]

Ben shivered at this eerie and unsettling information, and soon he regained his senses. He looked up, and what he saw, was more than startling.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 22 - 2014 - TECH SQUARE**

"You are an **IDIOT**!"

Contrary to what Dexter believed, Diva had always acknowledged her brother's annoyance from her actions. She always shrugged it off, knowing that he could just rebuild and re-program, making it seem like she couldn't care any less than she apparently did. But this, she knew she did something wrong. Tears were already streaming down her face, both in fear and in self-pity. She had not only destroyed what could've been the greatest advancement in technology since - forever, but from the sound of it she may have just caused a friend to disappear into nothing. It made her think how much she actually cared about her brother's work.

She shook with regret as she said "I-I don't understand-"

" **No of course you do not understand**! You cannot even understand, after _all these years_ , Deedee, that anything with metal or buttons could cause something to violently _explode_ or worse, get yourself _killed_!" Dexter responded, his shouting being so loud it could be heard from the outside of the lab.

"I-I'm sorry-"

"You cannot even care to recognize the world around you! Did you even KNOW that you had walked into my lab (how the hell did you walk into my lab)? DID YOU?!"

Diva didn't know what to say, she opened her mouth to say something apologetic, but nothing came out. She tried again, but before she could actually say anything, Dexter cut in.

"DO NOT say anything...it wouldn't mean much anyway..." Dexter retorted as he looked upon the remains of his time machine. He had little time to mourn for what may have been Ben's death as he began to consider the many costs of this turn of events, such as repair, insurance, replacement, overtime salaries for the rest of the scientists, and confronting Ben's mother about his fate. He shivered as he thought about that, it was sad enough that the Tennyson family was already dealing with one loss, and now another. As he was contemplating these costs, another scientist walked slowly towards Dexter, seeing the machine's remains too. Her face differed from his, instead of contemplating, she was questioning.

"Dr. McPherson...are you alright?"

"I..." He paused to get all his irrational feelings out of the way, "I'm fine, thank you Dr. Test".

She took a moment to breathe, she always did find it intimidating when he was angry. But Susan didn't let her guard down, as she knew that when Dexter used positions instead of names, he was still irritated. God help anyone who caught him irritated. "Well then, are we going to cover this up or tell the public?" she inquired.

"We cannot tell our material supplier, he would have our heads for this," Dexter replied, and after a deep breath he decided that, "We're keeping this covered up, the media could ruin our reputation with a single article, and next thing you know their opinions will spread like the Bubonic Plague in the 12th century."

Susan sighed in relief from this, as she was not hoping on-

"But this does _not_ mean that we will stop here."

-risking hundreds of thousands of dollars on fixing this dreadful situation.

"Make sure that this does not get out of this building, yes, but start rebuilding this machine immediately, leave the experimental matter acquisition as well as the necessary programming and calculations to me, and me alone," he said with confidence, but his confident speech was hiding a deep sense of worry, "and for all those wondering if this means higher payment, it does _not_. It means lower pay, because if anything, money should be the _least_ of _your_ problems!"

A large amounts of groans and sighs came in response to this unfairness. Dexter quickly responded to their sound of annoyance, "If you want someone to blame, blame her." he said as he pointed to Diva, "Now let us get back to work! Dexbots, please escort my _dear sister_ out of my laboratory." Dexter said, under gritted teeth.

All the scientists and managers returned to their roles, most of them out of frustration. As Dexter walked away, the Dexbots began to approach Diva slowly, in fear that she would jump away, but instead, she stayed. All in all, it really messed with their programming. Diva looked to the Dexbots, realizing that even standing around and doing nothing still broke her brother's tech, it didn't help improve her frenzied state. She looked at him with shock, now in full realization as to what she had actually done. To confirm, she asked, "Dexter? W-What did that button do?"

Much calmer now, Dexter stopped in his tracks and refused to look back at her. He thought maybe he should tell her, that one of his oldest friends was either sent into the future with no means of travelling back, or worse he was disintegrated by the spilling of the radioactive energy the metal surface was equipped with. Instead, he continued walking, disappointed that his sister, who was 1.4x older than him, and although 212 times more ignorant than him, was still unable to figure out something so simple.

Then again, would he expect anything else?

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015**

Green, lots of green. Evil green everywhere.

That was all his mind could attempt to grasp at the sight of a giant planet in the sky that was fused to other planets that was DANGEROUSLY close to Earth, and he saw this having _already_ come out of his earlier state of shock.

Ears now fully capable of listening, Ben turned around after hearing a strange bubbling sound, which came from an equally strange pool of green ooze. The ooze looked familiar, something he had encountered before, maybe? Then it came to him.

No way...

Was this really the same substance from all those years ago? The same one they fought with that transducer thing?

But it was destroyed...

...was it?

He didn't know what to think of it. He felt a sickness in his stomach, it overcame him as fast as the rubble from the destroyed grey ground floated into the apocalyptic green sky. He didn't know what this sickness was, maybe it was the repercussions from the "time jump error", or maybe it was the blood-curdling sight...of all this. Ben looked around and saw many of the destroyed buildings of Tech Square, covered in the same green substance that he was so dangerously close to. As he turned around, he saw an entire sea comprised of this ooze, and went on for miles and miles ahead. Could this be causing all the destruction around him?

What if we played right into their hands, Ben thought, what if what happened back in 2009 was just the beginning?!

Suddenly, an explosion went off elsewhere, crumbling a building in the process, but Ben was too distracted to notice the sound. He gazed at this endless sea, wondering what exactly was happening to the world. Was it dying? It didn't feel like it. Did this have to do with some man-made experiment? No, otherwise there wouldn't be a giant super-planet in the sky. He continues to ignore the obvious, unfortunately ignoring the giant building, which was toppling over, that was about to crush him.

Just as he was turning around, to see what was forming the shadow behind him, he felt himself being pushed to the side, and later the crumbling of a building now behind him. He looked up to thank his savior, only to find...

...it was Number Five?! Ben didn't know how to react, he hadn't seen her since they were kids! Not to mention, she looked radically different. She retained her signature red gatsby cap, gold earrings, and blue color-scheme but sported some kind of metal armor that covered most of her body, even her clothes, which itself looked like it was altered to be a second set of armor. On her forearms were yellow colored armguards, and on her chest armor was a spray-painted '5' in white. After close observation, Five came to realize who she was looking at.

"Holy cannoly! Ben, is that you?!"

"Not now Number Five! We need to - oh my glob! Ben?!" shouted someone off in the distance, who later revealed himself to be...Finn?! Ben couldn't get his head around it, where did Finn come from?! Shouldn't he be in Ooo? What happened to Ooo if he was here?! So many questions populated Ben's noggin it actually hurt!

Finn snapped out his trance, and he returned to his uncharacteristically serious demeanor, "Look, we gotta get movin'! Ben, you should follow us, I've got a hunch on who you are!"

Who _he_ was?

What did that even mean?! As Finn and Five made their way up the cluttered pieces of rubble, he decided that he needed to ask Computress what the hell was even happening!

"C-Computress!" Ben asked, with urgency, but to his horror, he was met with static. Something screwed up his communications server. " _C-Computress?_ " he asked again, his false of hope overtaking his senses. But quickly the reality of the situation he had found himself in seeped into his mind.

He had no way of going back home, or even contacting family. Tears threatened to form in his tear ducts, and something was making his throat heavy.

...

No, he thought, this wouldn't be how Ben 10 goes out!

He readied his omnitrix and set it to Heatblast, and made his way up the rubble, where he found Finn and Five to be back-to-back, fighting those same spawn monsters from before, only they looked bigger, and more powerful than before. Even worse, it seemed like the spawns were winning. Without hesitation, Ben took out the omnitrix, and with a click, a pulse, and one slightly painful morph later, he was covered in charred lava rocks with a flaming hair rising up.

"All right you damn aliens!" Ben shouted, channeling his aggression about the situation into his powers, "This time, you STAY PUDDLES OF SLIME!"

He extended his arms to call upon this form's pyrokinetic powers as he closed his eyes, expecting to open them to find the enemies before him back in puddles, but suprisingly, they didn't.

Not even an ember could leave his palms! What was going on?!

His continuing confusion was halted when Finn jumped up almost as if out of Nowhere and kicked a spawn back, where it was immediately shot by Number Five. Finn then quickly bent down, stretched his leg to the right and kicked a fusion spawn away from Ben, while using his sword to attack the larger spawn, plunging it with a goo-splattering momentum. The smaller spawn quickly lunged at Finn, only to be blasted, as if on que, by Five.

"You good?" Finn asked the seemingly powerless superhero, who looked at his hands as if the answers to his questions were scribed there. Ben looked up to Finn's battle-scarred, yet somewhat still _positive face_. This was an _apocalypse_! Why was he smiling?! Ben couldn't take a second more.

"ARRRGGGGHHH!" Ben screamed in frustration, his molten hands clutching his molten head like a ball. Finn took his hand back as his smile faded into a look of confusion.

"I just tried to use Heatblast's powers, I tried incinerating them!" exclaimed Ben, "Why isn't anything working?!"

Finn drew a slightly puzzled look, widening his eyes and curving his lips. He was expecting a question more like 'what the hell is going on'. "It's gotta be this un-bombastic atmosphere, those terrafusers must've polluted the air with fusion matter, so now they can control how **he** wants things to go out." said Finn.

"Who's **he**?!"

Before Finn could answer, a small beep came from his pocket, out of which he pulled a circular-like device which he looked at for a few moments before turning to Five, then back at the device. Ben didn't realize what it was Finn held in his hands before he heard the familiar beeps that another well-known device made.

Was that a NanoCom?

NanoComs were made by Dexlabs as the ultimate accessory. By utilizing a French-developed online safe-space network, the NanoComs could digitize any personal belongings and transport it to this space for safe-keeping and later use. Aside from having an app store of its own, it also had a long-distance communications feature, one of the most advanced GPS tracking systems on the planet, and could also remain up-to date on one's personal health status. It was universally successful and had a wide range of uses.

But they weren't built for use in wars, or anything like that for that matter.

"Number Five! We seriously need to keep moving!" Finn said, while he winced at the sound of another building collapsing behind him.

"Finn, if that hunch you've got is true, then Numbuh 5 thinks this is more important than a few meet ups." Number 5 said. She then looked at Ben, still as Heatblast. "Now that that's over with, Ben, what's the last thing you remember?" she asked.

"N-NO! You answer my questions first! Too much has happened today, _way_ too much for a normal psyche to handle practically, especially when he or she CAN'T handle it practically because he or she's being cut off nearly EVERY DAMN SEC-"

Before he could say anymore, Ben was interrupted by a computer-like voice from Five's NanoCom.

[Warning: More hostiles - incoming]

Finn and Five became less relaxed from this alert, and realized that they had more company ahead of them.

"SEE!" exclaimed Ben.

Suddenly, an animal-like thing jumped down from the toppled building on the left, and tackled Number Five to the ground, growling and chomping at her while she resisted its unbearably strong grip on her forearms. Finn delivered a flying kick to the beast, sending it back. The creature hesitated, allowing Ben to have a clearer look at it.

It was a three-headed dog. Not a real one, of course, it was a mechanized model, which looked not only like a three-headed dog, but like an assortment of tech was clobbered together or reformatted to form a body. Fusion matter was splattered on its torso, and on each of its snouts were glowing red eyes that could kill all on their own. It slowly turned around, revealing itself, and with all three of its heads, it gave a mighty roar.

Almost immediately, Finn and Five charged into battle, both equipped with powerful weapons, keeping the creature down. Meanwhile, Ben continued trying to spark at least a small flame, but to no avail his luck was grim. He struggled to find a solution, some kind of loophole that could make this problem go away. Maybe he could turn into another alien? No, if the reason behind his bad luck was the fusion matter in the atmosphere, who knows what kind of effects that could have on, say, Diamondhead, or Chromostone? Or worse, Alien X? So what could he do as Heatblast in order to use his powers?

He'd have to release something into the air, something highly flammable...

...like another flame?

"Hey guys?!" Ben shouted to the preoccupied heroes.

Five, who was being majorly beaten, had resorted to using her pistols as shields. "L-little busy over here!" she responded, with a clear struggle in her voice.

"I need a flame - any flame! Anyone got a lighter or something?!"

Five started to back away, moving towards Ben, "Finn! Keep the Cyberus busy!"

"'Keepin' busy' is my middle name!" said Finn, retaining the joyous smile on his face, "Or was it HUCKLEBERRY?!" he continued as he jumped and kicked the Cyberus in the left-most snout, kicking the rest down.

Five proceeded to look through her NanoCom vigorously, clearly getting irritated, while with her other hand she kept firing at the three-snouted monstrosity. After a few moments, she was able to finally find what she was searching for, crafting a clever grin on her face. What she pulled out was a pistol-like rifle, not too short to be a rifle and not to long to be a pistol. It had a purple and desert-sand color scheme, with a green range that was now aimed directly at Ben.

As soon as she delivered a few shots to the Cyberus behind her, which was being surprisingly well-handled by Finn, Number Five made not a single moment to think about what she was doing and shot Ben with a single blazing ray of heat coupled with liquid plasma.

What Ben felt next was like he could ignite the whole planet if he had to. As he felt thousands, if not millions, of stray heat particles flowing through his molten, and now glowing body, he couldn't help but saying:

"HAH! See _this_?! HERO TIME!" The next thing Ben knew was him releasing what he could assume was a massive buildup of heat. He directed it towards the Cyberus, nearly hitting Finn, and blasting the three-headed dog through the toppled building behind it as if he was swatting a fly. The heat blast tore the creature apart until it became nothing but dust in the wind. Ben found himself collapsing in utter relief that his idea worked. He held his hands high up in the air in victory for the world to see, well, what was supposedly left of the world anyway. His excitement came to a halt when he heard the classic recharge signal coming from the badge on his chest. Damnit, he thought as he stared at his now human hands, he should have conserved power by reverting back to human form when he had the chance!

"Shmow-zow!" exclaimed Finn. "Nice shot!"

"Yuh-huh..." said Ben nonchalantly, seemingly tired out.

While Ben sat down, Five took out her NanoCom, and zapped the igniting gun back into her storage folder. She extended her arm to lend a hand to Ben, which he waved away, and stood up. Finn walked towards the two and turned his head toward the KND operative.

"So, Number Five? Think its true?" asked Finn.

"He doesn't know _jack_ about fusions, and he's got an Omnitrix on his damn wrist," responded Five, "no way in letter 'H' it ain't him."

"What are you two talking about?" asked Ben, meeting the gaze of two swiveling heads.

"Ain't it obvious? You've been missing for the whole war!" exclaimed Finn.

"I wouldn't say missing...more like-"

"Time travel?" said both Finn and Five, surprising Ben with their knowledge on "recent" current events. He responded with a quaint nod, and both their eyes lit up like the fourth of July.

"Today must be Numbuh Five's lucky day!" she said as another couple buildings collapsed in the background. "You're the Ben from the past that Dexter told us about. Alright, we gotta get you to safety and Sector V! There's no time to lose!"

Nothing felt better than to know that Dexter had tried to solve the problem, and the possibility that he could be alive? Ben felt goosebumps go down his skin at the thought that he may get to leave this nightmare faster than he arrived. But then he remembered the scattered and destroyed parts of the time machine, and realized it would be harder than he could imagine.

Ben didn't know what he should do. Should he help?

Even if he didn't want to, he wouldn't have a choice. This was the future, after all...

"We can spare a few, Five." said Ben, in a much calmer and alert voice, "I want to know what happened."

Five looked perplexed, she didn't know how Ben would take their current state, but it wasn't like she had another choice. "Look up in the sky." she said pointing to the mess of a super-planet above, " _That's_ Planet Fusion, ruled by some nasty guy named _Fuse_! Fuse has covered the world in that gross green goo, and those disgustin' fusion spawns are wrecking everything!"

Being a seasoned Plumber-in-training meant understanding even the most abridged explanations, but that was just not anything close to helpful. Seeing the confusion on Ben's face, Finn stepped in to explain further.

"Well, yeah, whatever Five said, but you should see what they can do first-hand. Fuse's monsters have adapted to our planet, they're taking on familiar forms, bonding to pretty much anything based on the Earth's nature and environment. Worst off, they use these terrafusers that can terraform and infect the Earth with fusion matter. If..." Finn halted for a second, looking down in what seemed to be fear, which was rare to see in him. "if the infection gets bad enough, the terrafusers locked here will connect directly with Fuse, and before we know it Planet Fusion will absorb _our_ world."

Ben took a moment to digest all of that. He looked back at the sea of fusion matter that now covered what remained of Earth, realizing that this was zero hour, and there wouldn't be an 'Earth' after. He turned back to the two seasoned heroes, with a face of question once that once was masqueraded by a face of relaxation.

"These fusions...they're from before, right?" Ben asked, looking at Number Five, who gave a small nod. Ben couldn't make sense of it, the last terrafusers didn't do _this much damage_.

"I don't get it, then what were those terrafusers from 5-no-6 years ago?"

"They..." Five paused and gave a small sigh, "...were beacons."

_B-blast...beacon! It is c-coming, for us...all._

Ben widened his eyes in shock, he couldn't believe it; Mojo was telling the truth all those years ago. It was why he was missing, it was why there were literal monkeys raining down from the sky, he was investigating... _this_. Damn it, he thought, why didn't that electro-thingamajig cannon fire earlier?! Maybe then none of this would have happened!

Before Ben could say or think anything else, Five's NanoCom buzzed with an alert. She pulled it out of her pocket and stared into it for a moment, turning to Finn with a small nod. Finn realized what she meant, and quickly turned back to Ben, "Hey, we've gotta go now. You think you're up to speed?"

"Yeah...pretty much." he replied.

"Alright, then-wait, do you have a NanoCom?"

Ben pulled out his Com out of jacket pocket, and held it up for Finn's view. Contrary to what he was thinking, the look on Finn's face was slightly dissapointed.

"Oh right, you don't have the newer model." said Finn, "Here, take mine."

"Why?" asked Ben, "Won't you need it?"

Finn gave a shrug as he threw it into Ben's hands, "I'm gonna die here anyway, buddy! Its just important that _you_ make it to safety before all the others. Besides, that model has features that were made just for this war, so yeah." he said, "Remember, you're going to want to collect that fusion matter, as much as you can, it's super important that you do."

As they left the scene, Ben stared down at his new NanoCom, wondering what he should do now. Then, right after, he gets a message on the device, signified by the blinking red light on the top left button. With the press of a button, he popped open the message monitor; it was coming from the future...

...Number Two?!

_"Anybody there? I need help here -bzzt- transmitter's gone_ _-bzzt-_ _"_

Ben tried to send a message back, but found it was one way only. That figured, if the fusions and their fusion matter are sentient alone then they have eyes and ears possibly everywhere, so short range communication was the better bet. Ben winced as another explosion got set off, doing more unseen amounts of damage, and soon ran towards Number Two.

* * *

One of the things that he loved about being his sector's chief communications officer was that he could have ears everywhere. He could listen in on KND transmissions, even the ones not limited to his sector (he'd have to thank the TND for that position...if he lives) and be the most alert during missions. It made him feel...omnipresent...whatever that meant...

But for this moment, he felt so ashamed of himself. How could he be bested by a stupid fusion monster?!

With a Pop-Gun in hand, and hiding behind a S.C.A.M.P.E.R, Number Two attempted to look behind the shuttle, but nearly got his face blasted off doing so. That oil ogre was firing at him non-stop; Two was just lucky his ship had its shields turned on to protect him, but he knew that the shields weren't going to last long with this amount of heavy fire.

Then, as if a light show had been turned on, the oil ogre stopped firing at him, and instead started to fire elsewhere. Two looked back to see who it was, and much to his surprise, it was an alien. An alien that resembled a large tiger, and was covered in fur, and had a familiar-looking hourglass symbol on its chest.

It can't be, Two thought.

"Ben?!" Two said; he couldn't help but stand up in shock, only to duck down from another blast. "Is that really you?!"

"What you didn't get the memo?!" screamed the angry and furry alien. He didn't take time to notice Two's new outfit, though. He was also wearing an armored version of his standard KND clothing. The flight cap was sort of torn, and he wore a kevlar-like black armor to cover his chest. His suspenders were what kept the armor close to his body, as they were on the outside. Like Number Five, Two had make-shift shoulder pads and leg guards crafted from trash cans or other things. All of these had the green goo splattered on them, right down to the boot.

"Well, sure I did, but-" Two tried to say, calling back to Ben's sarcasm, but he was interrupted by a grunt from the alien hero. He was hit.

"Aarghh!" Ben shouted after getting hit in the shoulder. Luckily for him, it wasn't severe. "Lemme tell ya somethin' about-"

Before Ben could say anything else in a breathless alien rant, he was yet again blasted, this time square in the chest, resulting in Ben's mighty wrath to quickly go away.

"Oh come on!" he shouted in frustration, and quickly hid behind the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. with Number Two. The first thing he did after sitting down was check to see if the blast had hacked the omnitrix, or if it just blasted him out of his form. Luckily for him, it was the latter.

"What happened, dude?" asked Ben, "I thought the Kids Next Door didn't want anything to do with this."

"Well, sure," replied Two, "but then they attacked and nearly destroyed our treehouse."

"Wasn't that 6 years ago?"

"I wasn't talking about 6 years ago." said Number Two, to Ben's questionning, and later horrified surprise. "Seriously though, I could use some help over here. You up for it?"

Ben looked up high in the sky and down on the ground, but couldn't find any other superhero near them. "Dude, where's everyone else?" he asked, noticing the distinct lack of presence of a Number One, or Three, or Four.

"Either dead, or too busy to spare a second, go figure." the KND operative told the alien hero, a second was spared in his speech, which could unfortunately say a lot, especially with someone like Hoagie, "But this attack was no accident for sure. See that oil ogre over there?"

Ben looked through the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. glass to see a monstrous fusion, in no way, shape, or form resembling a fusion spawn. It didn't look much like an ogre to begin with, it looked more like a non-anthro alligator had grown arms and legs. Apart from that it had a metal harness with several small LED lights on it, and a matching helmet to go with. It hadn't moved far from the Terrafuser that it presumably spawned from, and in its hand, was something it was clutching rather tightly, the same way a mother would clutch her child to her chest: in a protective manner.

"It's using a 2x4 transmitter to broadcast our position. It's the thing that basically brought the fusions to our doorstep. Here in Tech Square, I mean, the first door was Mandark's fault." said Number Two, the disdain for the aforementioned being very poignant in his voice. "If we can get the transmitter, though, we may have a slight chance of saving Tech Square, and better yet, the rest of the world that's still intact."

"How can you be sure?"

"The transmitter was Number 274's, it could intercept all kinds of KND frequencies, it helped in battle against adults when more reinforcements were needed, and could also scramble the enemy's defense system and stuff like that. For the war, 274 gave it to me, and I modified it so we could all be connected on the same defense grid. If the fusions have it, it won't be long before that defense grid is gone, and so will we be."

"So we need to kill that monster and get the transmitter!" exclaimed Ben, but he was quickly held back by Two.

"We can't! If we kill the oil ogre, we could _break_ the transmitter. Number One would kill me, and so would Mandark!" Two replied, "Did I mention that without that transmitter, our defense grid is defense-less?!"

Ben looked down at the pavement of the cracked road, as if it would have the solutions for what to do written on itself. Before he knew it, an idea sprung to mind.

"Does it have any metal parts? Anything magnetic?"

"Of cour-" Before Two could finish, Ben had already slammed the hourglass symbol on his wrist, transforming himself into another, different alien. This one had a metallic bronze color scheme to it, with lighter colored stripes covering it as if it were reflections of the body's surface. To top it off, it had a _floating_ head, with thick green glowing goggles and no mouth. Number Two widened his eyes in sight of Ben's new form, his goggles' lenses visibly moving with them.

"Wait here!" he said.

Ben then found himself exposing himself to the ogre-like fusion. The creatures glistening red eyes staring at him, like a lion eyeing its prey behind a rock, only there was no rock, and the lion was out in the open.

"Metal!" screamed Ben, catching the ogre's attention, "Meet magnetism!" The alien hero held his arms up to face the fusion, and before he knew it, electro-magnetic waves were already vibrating off of him, like a flock of birds with a phone line. The oil ogre fell as if it tripped, and as the metal was meeting the magnetism, the oil ogre lost grip of the transmitter, and Ben caught it and repelled it to Number Two, who hurried quickly into the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. to plug the transmitter into its systems. However, the ogre found itself continuing to come towards Ben. The hero realized what was happening, the harness on its chest was also made of metal. The ogre wreathed in pain as its harness was being ripped from the fusion matter on its body, stray amounts of goo were sticking to it, stretching with the piece of metal. Ben realized his mistake as the fusion was nearly 15 feet away from him, and let go of the magnetic pull.

The oil ogre lied there, seemingly recovering from the pain it had undergone. Ben looked down and failed to comprehend what had just happened. Fusions couldn't feel pain before, in fact, human attacks didn't have _any_ affect on them. So why did this one feel it? Ben had to ask Two or anyone else when he escaped this mess, but those thoughts were cut off very shortly...

...as the oil ogre lifted its head with a flame in its eyes, a flame of rage.

Oh, son of a gun, Ben thought.

The oil ogre began firing random and aimless blasts as Ben scampered back into the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. The monster was very clearly enraged by Ben's inconsistent offensive, and was still clutching its harness as if it was its chest.

Once inside, Ben quickly held the door shut with his back, to which the oil ogre was at this point punching the door. Its force being so powerful that it knocked Ben onto the floor. Luckily enough, the S.C.A.M.P.E.R's herculean density prevented the door from being destroyed so easily. While Ben was dealing with the oil ogre, Number Two was at the ship's pilot seat, nearly crushing the radio receiver in his hands, the word 'mayday' was stamped on the device with ink as his hand lifted from it.

Ben was struggling maintaining the door that was being pounded by the fusion on the other side, its strength being that of a battery ram. Thoughts raced through his mind (for the fifth time already), how would he be able to do this? There must have been a way to fix the damaged ship, maybe even give it an upgrade.

Luckily for him, there was, and he pulled out watch and quickly switched to the alien DNA sample of a Galvanic Mechamorph.

"C'mon, Upgrade, _c'mon_!" Ben shouted to the omnitrix, as if he expected a response. With no wait, he slammed the Omnitrix as hard as he could into its metallic strap; he could feel the very hairs on his skin shrink into his now changing skin, which was quickly turning into mush. The mush that was now a part of him developed glowing neon-green motherboard lines that led up to the hourglass symbol that was now on his chest.

"YES! Thank you Upgrade, thank you watch!" Ben exclaimed.

Ben made no haste diffusing himself into the doors of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R, the entire ship now was covered in the same glowing motherboard lines that Upgrade famously sported. Number Two jumped in his seat at the sight of this takeover, and a neon circle appearing on his transmission monitor.

"Whoah! What just-"

"Well don't just sit on your ass! Try and use me!" Ben exclaimed to the strangely frightened KND operative. He had seen the form before, why the startle? Whatever, Ben thought.

Just then, the oil ogre had began banging on the cockpit glass, itself insulated and shielded, but not indestructible. It continued flailing its arms, desperately trying to break the now Galvan-ized glass. Ben didn't want to admit it, but its random punching hurt like hell. Number Two, on the other hand, had a much more mundane reaction.

"I'm getting too old for this superhero stuff..." said Number Two, "I didn't even want to play superhero in the first place!"

"Forget that crap!" exclaimed Ben, "Fire me! Fire me now!"

Number Two made no more hesitation to take control of the now neon-lighted console, his hands jumping and pressing all kinds of buttons, the sounds of various hatches opening up, especially on top of the cockpit, were evident. As was the sound of a thousand bullets, as if made from steel. The oil ogre was thrown back, having lost most of its balance, but didn't at all wait to charge back into the fight.

Its efforts were futile though, as with the press of a button, Number Two launched the ship's side missile, sending the monster to ride it all the way towards the sky.

The next sound that was evident: an explosion.

Ben had to (figuratively) sit down for this one, it was one hell of a rush for sure. But Two seemed to be in something akin to complete shock. Was he paralyzed from fear, or relief? Probably the latter. Ben, after pausing himself, thought it was-

"What a waste of - _oil_!" said Ben.

-a good idea to make a _pun_. Wow.

Two blinked and gave him (on the monitor) a quizical look, "You've...got a really long way to go, 'grasshopper'."

"What? What're you talking about? That was great!" Ben responded, "Admit it, you were going to say that one."

"No...maybe...not...definitely not." said Number Two, "W-whatever, did the oil ogre cause any damage to the S.C.A.M.P.E.R?"

"Just a few bits of damaged hardware, like on the door," said Ben, still connected to the ship's mainframe, "don't worry, though. I'm patching things up right now...including an upgraded communications relay!"

Two didn't know how to thank him, he could only say "Nice work! 'Didn't even know you could _do_ that." Just then, he got an alert on his NanoCom; Ben, as he separated himself from the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. and reverted back to his human form, could only make out a few words, like "trapped", "infected zone" and "lair". He pondered what those things actually meant, before coming back to the oil ogre.

"Two, when I accidentally attracted that thing's harness, it looked like it was in a lot of...pain. But I thought these things can't feel pain without imagination energy."

"It's because it bonded to an external object. When they bond to random stuff like animals, plants, metal, or wood, they get a pain factor. The fusion monsters directly from Planet Fusion, like the spawns, they can only be killed with imagination energy." Two said, still readying the S.C.A.M.P.E.R for something, "But, the pain factor is real small with these spawns that bonded to something. It's really hard to hurt them alone, but a couple other things help out."

"What other things? Imagination energy?"

"Nope. Something else entirely. Look, Dexter can explain it to you later." Two responded, "But first we have to get him."

"Where do we find him?"

"We're not gonna find him," Two said as the S.C.A.M.P.E.R lifted off the ground, "We have to rescue him."

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 22 - 2014 - TECH SQUARE**

[COMPUTRESS OPERATIONAL]

Computress's source code flowed through the wires of Dexlabs, going back and forth with simulated sweat dripping down her console screen.

[Priority Alpha - BRING BACK TEMPORAL DISPLACEMENT SUBJECT: BEN TENNYSON]

It was the third time she had re-stated her objective, she couldn't figure it out the first two times, so why try now? Computress shrugged it off as her latest patch update from Dexter.

She ran the 42nd simulation to determine a possible solution to reverse the outcome of the time travel.

What Diva "Deedee" McPherson did was disable the Temporal Flux linked to the fuel source, removing the time-jump's ability to lock on to a specific point in the timeline, meaning that Ben could have been at any point in history. But that wasn't possible, as Computress had already cross-referenced her findings with all historical records on the internet. There was no evidence to suggest that Ben went back in time, but rather forward. Computress theorized that while she was shorted out in communication with the subject, she still had connection to him, just through a bad channel. If Computress could trace her end of the channel, then perhaps she could trace the other end. Of course, she was successful, and the date read was February 4th, 2015.

What grinded her gears was that she _already_ knew all of this information. Even as a generally emotionless program, she hated having to go through statistics constantly. She forced herself to move on to the next part of the problem: how they were going to get him back from approximately 8 months into the future. The Test twins' reports theorized that if, because the time machine itself was destroyed, he was technically displaced in time, they could build a machine that could extract someone out of that time. They requested to trial such a concept in their own house and lab, with their own subject in their younger brother, but Dexter denied them that request, as they didn't want any more accidents occurring with their tech. So most of the operations took place in the lab, but the scientists have been struggling with their work. She knew even then, that the idea was impossible, as the displacement time period was now apart of the subject's own timeline, so to extract them from _their own timeline_ could cause a very dangerous paradox. But she let them continue, as it was nice to see them have some hope, and also because at least they were trying to solve the problem.

Because if there was one thing that was in her programming, it was that problems could never solve themselves. So she kept running simulations, no matter how many uncomfortably repetitive error signs she received.

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015**

Ben sat uncomfortably in his seat, not in the way that most people would when they would sit next to a complete stranger on an plane, nor in the way they would during embarrassing family dinners. No. He was sitting uncomfortably in his seat because of everything he saw, that had led to this point.

He (mostly) knew how to keep his cool, and put on a calm expression. He did it when Number Five and Finn were explaining this mess, he did it when he fought the oil ogre, as a matter of fact, he was doing it right there. But he couldn't do it when he first arrived in this future. Was it the pressure? The rush? The feeling of something looming over him, fate towering and staring into his eyes. What could it be?

Ben looked out the window, asking the outdoors for answers once again. But all he could see was the color green.

The hero looked at the operative, who was focused on the flying, and asked, "You said that we had to go rescue Dexter."

"Which we are."

"But from what, exactly? A larger fusion monster?"

"No, a Fusion Doppleganger." said Number Two, gaining Ben's interest. Realizing he still needed to explain, Two continued. "Since the terrafusers are bonding and infecting Earth, making it more and more a part of Planet Fusion, I guess the same works with Fusion Spawns. All it needs is a DNA sample, and it becomes this...dark, twisted, and even corrupted version of yourself. It has all your powers, your weapons, your clothing, even your face, and the weirdest part? It's not technically shapeshifting."

"How long does that whole assimilating thing happen?"

"A day or two."

What?! A _day or two_?! The mere thought astounded him. Even if its got an abnormally fast production and growth system, every organism in the universe with something that fast would still take _decades_ just to reach a form resembling an adult. So how can one species, after assimilating matter, do _all_ of that in the span of a _few days_? "But that's biologically impossible-"

"-for us, and for the rest of the species in the universe, as you guys in the hazmat suits are talking about," Ben found himself taken aback by Number Two's crude summary of the Plumbers. "But the fusions manage to do it faster, and we still don't know how. Add it to the list of other law-altering crap they've done."

They began flying over an area notable for it being the only tree clearing in Tech Square. But much like Tech Square itself, the place was a mess. Ben couldn't recognize it because of the lakes of fusion matter, or the twisted trees, but because it wasn't even built in his time.

"Where are we flying over?" Ben asked.

"Galaxy Gardens, now the Tech Square Infected Zone." said Number Two, towards a questioning Ben in the back. It was clear that he didn't know what an 'infected zone' was, though, but he tried to hide it, much to total failure. "That's what the most infected areas on the planet are called. Normally its when too many of Fuse's Terrafuser machines are in the same place, or if there's a large enough terrafuser; it causes a massive amount of fusion matter to be produced, which alters the gravitational pull of the area. Fusion matter's completely whacko inside. At least we've got the shields..."

"Containment Shields? For quarantine?"

"Yeah, 'couple o' nerds tinkered around with them, now they can actually contain the infection and stop it from spreading into the populated areas. But with Planet Fusion getting closer and all, those shields won't be doing much good soon."

"Why not?"

"Dexter had to reprogram them. The shields have a special kind of locking system to lock onto checkpoints. If the infection inside expands, it will expand too...it can expand to our homes...our bases. Like, we knew the risk with setting this stuff up was that the infected zone would be more concentrated with Fuse's energies, so it would be like a glacier melting and raising sea levels. But...I...I don't know...they just caught us so off-guard..." It was quite obvious that Number Two was holding back his anxiety, there was a large lump in his throat, trying hard to come out.

"You alright, Hoagie?"

"Yeah, 'm fine," he said, "it's just...y'know, I didn't think this is how it would end for me...or anybody..."

Ben didn't know what to say, as he felt a bit of a lump in his throat too. If there was a chance for hope out there somewhere, where would they find it? In a hole? In a junkyard? In the sea of fusion matter, the very thing they were fighting against?

There was hope alright, hope for the enemy. What made matters worse was the thought of how they "acquired" that hope.

A wave of energy caused the vessel to mildly shake, and a visible and seemingly solid part of the shield passed through like a ghost. Two turned around to Ben and nodded, meaning they had made it into the infected zone, and were set to land shortly.

But something still didn't feel right to Ben about all of this. There wasn't any sign of a trap for sure, but after everything that had just happened within the last 30 minutes, Ben suspected something was happening that was making all the humans or heroes...rush for some reason. He called back to Finn saying that 'he was going to die there anyway', he thought that was just sarcastic, or some kind of anti-euphemism that Finn would normally make. But Number Five had actively pushed to go somewhere. So it was clear that they were rushing.

But what could they possibly rushing for? Sure it's the end of the world and all, but the only time someone would be rushing in a battle would be if...

...oh no...

* * *

There was no quantifiable or qualifiable way to sugar-coat the situation.

Dexter was screwed.

He was screwed so deep, he could be mistaken for an actual screw.

He continued to hide behind the collection of stalagmites as if it was some type of a fort. He knew that they had fusion matter running through its internal structure, and could fall apart if it wanted to, or worse, if it could form some crazy abomination made out of stalagmites. Yet he continued to hide from the Fusion that slowly searched for him, for whatever it would have been worth.

But what he had hoped the most for was that his message was sent. If there was any bright light in these deep dark caverns, it was in that.

But what came out of the fusion portal a few moments later was much more than hope could have ever offered.

Number Two of the Kids Next Door; their lead technician, pilot, and communications officer...

...and Ben Tennyson, wielder of the Omnitrix, non-acting intergalactic peacekeeper, and also supposed to be _dead_.

The universe really seemed to have a way of removing light in one area, and letting a light shine in another, Dexter thought. Number Two quickly stood up and patted his clothes, while Ben was taking the time to acknowledge his surroundings. The alien hero, who was once again helpless on the floor looked up at the standing KND operative.

"Dude, how the hell were you able to do that?!" asked an unusually irritated Ben.

Two blinked at him, with no clue as to what he talked about. "Do what?"

"All you had to do was just touch the creepy tentacles, and now we're on our way to the _center of the Earth_!"

"What, interacting with the lair? Dexter can tell you that-"

" _You keep saying that as if there's not enough time to say anything_! It's the apocalypse! What the hell is there to keep asking _Dexter_ for?!"

"You know," Two responded, "...you can ask him yourself."

Two's head pointed toward someone behind Ben, to which he turned around saw a face that, for a while, he thought he would never see again.

Dexter. Freakin'. McPherson. In the same attire as always: a mad scientist-type lab coat, that was open enough to expose his black turtle-neck, a white belt with a bronze buckle, and black dress pants and dress shoes (seriously?).

"It is you!" said Dexter. Freakin'. McPherson, in a whispering tone. He was responded with a clasp of hands, and then a really tight hug.

"Thank god! There's someone who's actually sane here!" Ben exclaimed while still hugging, causing the KND operative behind him to huff in frustration.

"Hey! Who decided to use a giant magnet on an oil ogre just to get a transmitter?!" responded Two.

"Will you all keep it down?!" whispered Dexter, pushing himself away from Ben, with great irritation in his voice. Nothing out of the ordinary, "Fusion Buttercup is in the next room, we must stop it before it causes any more damage!"

"Then how about we go kick some alien ass!" exclaimed Ben.

"And then get out of this place as soon as we can-"

"OH COME ON!" Ben exclaimed. He lost his cool yet again, and unknowingly raised his voice, which was the _one_ thing Dexter told him _not_ to do. Moments later, eerie footsteps were heard, and later a literal shot in the dark, sending Ben flying backwards.

"Dammit!" said Dexter, "Two, get it on front!"

"Your front or my front?!"

" _MY_ _front_!" Dexter said, then turning to the three-quarters conscious Ben, "Ben, be useful, it's hero time!"

Before Ben could object to someone else using _his_ catchphrase, he suddenly felt another blast of energy hit his chest, and next he felt himself being thrust from the ground and onto the cave floor, yet again; he turned around to see what his attacker was and once he managed to focus on it, he saw...Buttercup.

Buttercup of the Powerpuff Girls?

But...something was horribly, _horribly_ wrong; it made Ben question why he confused this being for Buttercup in the first place. She was bigger in size, her skin was a very bubbly light green, her normal attire was completely black, and her eyes were glowing transluscent red. There were sparks of lightning that flew across her jaw that formed something akin to a smile, not the reassuring kind for sure. Her hands were shaking insanely, as were her feet, and head, as if there was something bothering her, or if there was something uncomfortable in her attire. But that wouldn't happen to her, no, these were shakes of insanity, of complete and utter cruelty. And she was not Buttercup.

Not she... _it_. _It_ was a fusion doppleganger. _The_ Fusion Doppleganger that was keeping Dexter busy.

Dexter took out a large, wrench-like staff and attacked Fusion Buttercup's legs, while Ben slammed the Omnitrix and became Big Chill, and attacked from above and aimed for its chest using its ice breath. Number Two took out a standard KND custard gun, and shot at its chest. It was a deadly combat, with the Fusion itself not restraining to fire some of Buttercup's laser vision back at the heroes; nobody noticed the thin flow of fusion matter that crept along the ground and entered the cage-fight in the battleground, and Number Two certainly didn't notice it be absorbed by the Fusion doppleganger. A roar of fury sounded out as Fusion Buttercup threw itself to Number Two, its legs were dripping fusion matter because of the damage sustained. With the KND operative firmly in its grip, Fusion Buttercup flew up and away from Dexter and Ben, and away from their efforts to get their friend back.

Number Two struggled, trying to pry off the Fusion's grip on his arms. Lightning cackled once again to form a smile around the supposed mouth of Fusion Buttercup. The next thing Number Two felt was pain, unimaginable pain that extended as far down to his feet, and as far up as the top layer of his neck. He didn't know what the Fusion was doing to him, he couldn't pin-point where this pain was coming from as it came closer and closer to his head and brain. But luckily for Number Two, its grip loosened, and the pain stopped almost immediately. It was still there, of course, but was severely dilated. Number Two opened his eyes to see that the Fusion was focused on something else.

"Hey!" screamed someone from behind the Fusion, causing it to turn around, and meet the stoic face of Big Chill.

Ben tackled the Fusion, releasing Two from its grasp. Ben breathed ice onto Fusion Buttercup's face, and proceeded to endlessly punch it in its (non-existent) guts with his cold fists. This resulted in Fusion Buttercup squirming and spasming violently, as the damage it sustained became too much to handle, it began to lose its form entirely. It sprouted tentacle-like extrusions from its chest, eight of them, one of which threw Ben across the cavern and against the wall, knocking him out, not only from impact, but from the rush too. He was panting heavily afterwords.

It threw one of its extrusions into Dexter and shattered a large stalagmite with another. Number Two burst from the side as the rubble hit the ground, nearly hitting Ben. Now armed only with a small pistol that greatly resembled a plank of wood with a mouse-trap duct-taped to another plank, a glowing piece of mush that looked a lot like ice cream, and a trigger attached to the bottom, Number Two jumped behind a stalagmite and made no hesitation to shoot at the Fusion.

But his efforts were once again foiled as Fusion Buttercup walked toward Two menacingly, and shoved him aside mercilessly. It made its way to a defeated, and now human, Ben. The hair began to fall off its head, clothes began to fuse into its body, resembling a smudge of different paint colors. It was violently losing its form and shape. Its eyes began to glow eerily as it flew up, ready to obliterate the alien hero. Suddenly, it stopped. Its head began to spasm uncontrollably, as did its body a few moments later. When she fell to her knees, Dexter stood, mightier and taller than ever before, holding the Fusion's torso by the edges of his wrench-staff, applying a high-voltage electric shock to her entire body, causing it to fall apart quite quickly.

Dexter removed his trident-like weapon from its body, and all three heroes stared down at the quickly melting monster. "She is finished." proclaimed Dexter.

"Opposite of everything, huh?" said a now fully alert Ben to Number Two. "That explains (pant) why she wasn't as tough as t-(pant) the real Buttercup!"

"Are you actually being serious right now?" said Number Two, holding his back like an old man, recovering from the massive amount of pain he endured.

"Ye-(pant) no, she was pretty freaking tough."

"Now, there is no time to lose, Ben, did you collect enough fusion matter from any time before?"

Oh crap, Ben thought, he forgot to do the one thing that Finn told him not to forget to do! Damnit, he thought, I should have remembered, but why didn't I?

"You do not have much, do you?" realized Dexter, "Very well, we must all accumulate our resources for this one."

"I-I don't understand," said Ben, "what are we doing?"

"Remember the extra-things I told you about that help us fight the fusions? You're about to find out about one of them."

"Unfortunately, Number Two, we only have enough time to concoct it." said Dexter. "Ben, do you have a NanoCom with a fusion matter meter?"

Ben was taken aback, he thought his friend would take the time to even catch up, or have a little small talk. But instead, he was jumping straight to work, just as always. Some people never change, thought Ben.

He paused for a moment before taking out Finn's NanoCom, and handing it to the scientist extending his hand. "Excellent, Number Two, we will need whatever fusion matter and imagination energy you have." Dexter popped out a holographic interface from his worn out, purple gloves, and began typing immediately, but not before tossing Number Two a set of beakers. He also pulled out his NanoCom, and realized a large pillar-like supercomputer on top of the melting Fusion. Two took a sample of the fusion matter, which was spliced with Buttercup's personal DNA, and inserted it (somehow) into the machine. Dexter's glasses were lighted from the holographic image in front of him, making look like the opposite of an idiot, which Ben had presumed earlier.

With a few more clicks on the keyboard, Dexter took a step back, the Fusion Matter began to rise from Fusion Buttercup's carcass, and began to then wrap itself around a sphere of energy on the top of the supercomputer; the sphere began to glow bright white, filling the darkness of the cavern, before glowing red. To Ben's wonder, he saw...

...a miniature version of Buttercup. Her clothing was like how she first met Ben, except with a dark green scarf of some kind with it, and it seemed like all of it was fused on to her body, her head was enlarged, and her overall appearance was more...cartoonish.

Like Buttercup was a cartoon to begin with, thought Ben as he mentally rolled his eyes.

"Success." said Dexter, with no grin, yet a sound of pleasantry. "Number Two, trap the Nano."

"Yessir." said Number Two, sarcastically. Taking Finn's NanoCom, he held it up high and a red laser shot off it, which caused the miniature Buttercup to glow red, and disappear. Ben's jaw dropped in horror, as he thought Dexter had just disintegrated a living, breathing being.

"DUDE!"

"Relax," said Number Two, "the Nano is safe, its main energy and everything that was in it was stored inside here." he continued as he gave the NanoCom back to Ben, who still didn't understand how they were able to do that.

"Mandark will have to explain the science to you, I'm afraid," said Dexter, somehow reading Ben's confusion, but not where it mattered most, "because there is not enough time for that."

"Okay, enough!" exclaimed Ben. Dexter and Number Two were both looking at him now, as if he'd done something wrong. Ben persisted anyway. "I want to know, why the hell are we rushing so much?! Why are you dragging me on with this stuff, when, as a Plumber by the way, **I have a right to _know_** **!** "

"Fine, you want the truth? You want to know why we are in such a rush?" exclaimed Dexter, walking towards Ben very fast. "Well then, do you feel it, Ben? The shifting in your shoes, the rumbling in the ground?" Ben took a step back, and realized that Dexter was right, the ground was rumbling and shaking more by every passing second.

"You did not time-jump into the battle of Tech Square, you time-jumped into its _evacuation_.", said Dexter, which shocked Ben as to what it meant for the situation; his suspicions being confirmed, even though he didn't want them to be, Ben continued listening. "This city has already been lost, and despite our best efforts, we cannot do anything. Siyenn City will crumble, and after this, the only safe place on the planet for you before Planet Fusion absorbs the world will be in the suburbs of Townsville and Bellwood."

"But you, Ben. You can undo _all_ of this. All the devastation. All the lives lost. All of everything," said Dexter, the grammatical error in the last part of his sentence being pronounced, because he _never_ made those. "if we can send you back to the past, none of this death and destruction will have ever happened. And between bright and well-known minds like Howard over there-"

"Hogarth."

"-we can manage this. We can save our world, for _good_."

Ben, having enough experience in being told overwhelming things; he took a step back, and finally understood the need to rush. The apocalypse was a scenario _without_ hope. There wouldn't be an even slight chance that everyone will get to live happily-ever-after. But here, he could change _everything_ , he could warn Dexter ahead of time, there could be extra resources to fight, there could be a much more cooperative resistance.

This really could save the world, _for good_.

"I'll do it." said Ben, "Now let's get outta here."

"I will have to stay back, unfortunately," said Dexter, surprising Ben and Number Two, and halting them in their steps toward the fusion portal. "There is an important set of data I must send to Mandark, and it is paramount that he receives them. I will try to meet up with you at the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. Now go!" he said as the cavern began to shake more and more frequently.

And without hesitation, Number Two and Ben exited the Fusion Lair.

* * *

Number Two once again baffled Ben with his interaction with the tentacles of the fusion portal, but not enough to stray away from the mission at hand. Ben quickly grabbed hold of Two's arms, the same places that Fusion Buttercup held him in, causing the KND operative to wince in pain. But such pain was unrivaled by the horror they faced when they stepped out of the tentacles.

More buildings were crumbling. Cries of war turned into cries of terror. Behind them, Tech Square was slowly sinking into the green sea of fusion matter; buildings were crumbling, soldiers were screaming, all of these were quickly silenced, as if they weren't there in the first place. The infected zone containment shields surrounding the Galaxy Gardens were still standing, but the issue was that Ben could not see the other side of the shields, or the garden.

Fuse was wiping it clean off Earth's map. Whatever hope was left was running short of itself. But Ben, who was looking around at the devastation, knew this wasn't the end. He immediately turned back to Number Two.

"Two!" he said, "We need to extract everyone now!"

"But what if they're in the middle of someth-"

"IT DOESN'T MATTER!" Ben exclaimed. "We can't hold Tech Square anymore, right? We can deal with it later! But we need to go while we still can! So let's GO!"

At that instant, Numbuh Two understood what Ben meant. He pulled out his NanoCom, and said, "All surviving Kids Next Door Operatives! Get out of here before it's too late! You have the greenlight to rendevous at Sector V! And...also, can some pick us u-"

And then, as if the U.S. Navy came in, a platoon of S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s soared in a 'V' formation. Ben turned around to see the formation breaking and splitting off into different areas. It almost brought a smile to his face.

Not that long after, a group of two or three S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s began to land on the ground. The second they landed, both of them jumped onto the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s, firing at the monsters as they boarded. The spawns tried to bite on to the ledge, only to be met with a gun to the face. They then quickly took off towards the suburbs, which was already short on defenses itself, so they had to get there fast. As the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s landed, Numbuh Five, who was also on the S.C.A.M.P.E.R, instantly talked into her NanoCom, "Welcome aboard boys!"

The moment the doors opened to reveal Five and the ship's interior, Two darted inside, skipping past and ignoring a fusion matter puddle. "Whoever's flying, it's my turn!" shouted Number Two, as Ben and Number Five sat down and buckled themselves in. The S.C.A.M.P.E.R. made a careful and graceful exit from the infected zone, flying high as the skyscrapers sunk into the tranquil but toxic green sea.

Everyone inside seemed relieved, joyous that the horror was over and they could head home.

But suddenly, as if held by a towcable, the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. halted.

The interior shook. Everyone recoiled in surprise, with Five being a little more irritated. "Two! The anchor got loose again!"

"It's not the tow-anchor!" Two exclaimed. "I don't know what's happening!"

Something was keeping the ship from flying into the air. Ben quickly realized that it was what Finn had told him about. It was the gravitational disturbances caused by the terrafusers infecting the Earth. But it didn't make much sense, the rubble was flying upwards when he last checked, so why was it holding them down? Then it hit him.

Fuse had control of not just the weather, but now the gravity of Earth as well, and he was toying with them all along. Making them believe they had a fighting chance. As more masses of land would succumb to the fusion matter, so would Lord Fuse's dominion over the very balance of the planet. Ben believed that Fuse would probably use this move in the future, and made a mental note to remember it. Five, having also realized the same thing soon after exchanging looks with Ben, shouted across the ship. "Set up the anti-gravity generators NOW!"

"That might screw with the thrusters! Plus it could alter the S.C.A.M.P.E.R's navigation program and disrupt our course!"

"ENGLISH!"

"We may not be able to control the ship, Five! If we don't crash into the containment shields, we'll crash into the fusion sea!"

Gritting her teeth, she made a tough call. "It's our only way out of here without sinking into fusion matter!" Five retorted. She was not in the mood for the odds. "Now SET 'EM UP!"

"Just need one second..."

Slowly, the hull began to moan and grind, twist and turn out of shape. They were closer to the ground than they were when they landed in the infected zone. The ground was trying to assimilate them.

"HURRY!" Ben freaked out.

"C'mon...and...BOOM!" exclaimed Two.

As the anti-gravity generators began powering up, Ben could feel them slowly rising, along with two distinct hums from the rear. He didn't think there'd be a calm before the storm.

So the storm came when Two shouted to everyone, "Hold on to your lunchbox!"

And before anyone in the ship knew it, the ship was flying at its top speed, rocketing into the green sky, and staring danger right in its face. For a very long moment, all seemed fine, but of course, in the Fusion War, nothing stays fine forever. This was proven as a piece of building suddenly damaged the side of the hull, rocking the vessel and nearly knocking it off course.

"Incoming!" Number Two shouted as more large pieces of rubble began rising, and falling spontaneously. Needless to say, it was like a roller-coaster, only twice as intense, and 10 times more horrifying. The S.C.A.M.P.E.R. continued to rock back and forth as it rose higher and higher in the fusion matter-ridden atmosphere. The ship began to violently shake, fitting the intensity of the situation perfectly. Terrified expressions grew on all the KND agents, along with Ben, which resulted in a lot of squinting and gritting teeth. It may have been a roller-coaster ride, only this roller-coaster ride gave you the option out. Many were questioning what they were still doing in that ship, and others began praying as more rubble rose and fell, denting the hull with showers of projectiles.

It even broke the S.C.A.M.P.E.R's front windows, catching everyone by surprise. They all covered their hands and shrieked, protecting themselves from the sharp glass as the ship continued climbing.

It did not deter Number Two, though. A cut was left on his cheek, but it was no big deal. He kept looking above the shattered glass, hoping to find where the infected zone ended, as now their locked positions were floating adrift in the sea. As long as they could get past the barrier, they would be safe. But nothing could be seen for miles with the naked eye. With a huff of frustration, he propped his feet up to drive the S.C.A.M.P.E.R...while managing the pilot control panel. Quickly setting up a shield-tracker, he now had a new course. Hauling himself forward, the ship leveled out, and began flying straight. Two could now see the end point, the drifting shield. Flipping a switch calmly as chaos ensued behind him, he finally escaped the infected zone.

This finally allowed the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. to leave gravitational distortion field created by the terrafusers, allowing Two, and the rest of the passengers, to breath a heavy sigh of relief. They could go home with only a few nightmares tonight.

But Ben, after pausing for a moment to catch his breath, asked an important question. He hated thinking about it, knowing that it would ruin whatever victory was won here. But it had to be asked.

"Is this all that's left?"

Just as he had expected, the sighs stopped, and an uneasy silence took over.

"There are a couple others in the other S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s, but the others...I don't know..." said Number Two, with much more pronounced sadness in his voice, despite being brave enough to answer Ben's question. This feeling echoed through the ship, creating a drift that could not be interrupted. Yet Ben had to know, he turned to Five, who's head was looking out the window, unsure of whether she was looking at herself, or former technological marvels sinking down into the infected sea of fusion matter.

Ben looked out the side of his window, and saw the crumbling headquarters of Dexlabs Inc, and realized that Dexter may have never made it out of the laboratory. He turned to the cockpit of the ship.

"Two? Dexter...is he on the other ship?"

Number Two turned around to face him, "We can't establish short-range contact right now, or it'll reveal our position. We'll find out when we land." Ben nodded back, and returned to facing the floor, noticing Number Five's feet also, he turned up to her.

"Finn?" Ben asked, wondering about the fate of his good friend; even if he wasn't seen with Five, he could only expect the best, since Finn was a skilled hero for sure. But Number Five didn't respond, and instead lowered her head, which left Ben to do the same. There was another moment of silence, much shorter than the last.

Ben always understood Number Five's coolness, she felt that she needed to be a role model, she felt herself to be the glue of her KND sector, and if she showed her emotions, the team would fall apart quickly. But _here_ , she had every right to show her emotions, most of her friends were dead now, so there was no need to be 'cool'. "You don't seem to be-"

"Y'know it wasn't just Finn who fought 'till the end, Numbuh One was down there too, and Numbuh Five knew him way longer than that kid from Ooo," she said, with a profound amount of distance in her voice, as if she was trying hard to act cool as always.

"So why-"

"So when you see so many of your friends get taken away, you get used to it...and then, you're cool with it." Number Five's wording may have euphemized the point she tried to get across, but it hit just as hard. Ben didn't know how to react, he didn't know what to say. For the first time in his life...

...he didn't know what to say.

Number Two was multi-tasking in the pilot's seat, one hand on the controller, and the other on the computer. He was talking to a hologram of someone, and their conversation could be heard "Mandark, please tell me that you got some kind, any kind, of message from Dex. Please."

"I keep telling you Hogarth, I never got anything like what you are describing," voiced the hologram of Simon Astronomonov, "But I can theorize what it was actually for. The time machine."

Ben chuckled a bit, it was always like Mandark could read Dexter's mind.

"Don't worry though," Mandark reassured, "I already knew the plans."

What should have felt like a sense of relief and joy, did not bode well for Ben. If the message was not sent in time, then tough luck. But if Mandark _knew_ what the message would have been all along, then Dexter _risked his life for **nothing**_?! Anger boiled inside Ben for Mandark's idiotic mistake. If long-range communication reduced the chances of location, then Mandark could have easily have been informed of Ben's arrival, and have asked everyone to pull out. But no, Mandark did the stupid thing, yet again!

"A-Alright, we're getting closer to Sector V," said Number Two, "We're gonna have to cut you off."

"Sure." said Mandark's hologram, before fading out. Two found himself to be sweating profusely, which was something that he, despite his appearance, didn't normally do. "Hey...F-Five, can you take the wheel?" he asked, "I'm not feeling too cool..."

"Yeah...sure..." she responded as she got up and took over from Two, who sat across from Ben. Whose head was still spinning. He couldn't feel his wrists because of the anger he felt. He wondered as to whether he should cut them off to make himself feel better, but without wrists, he had no place to put the omnitrix. No omnitrix, no hope. But he couldn't feel his wrists under this pressure anyway, so hope or no hope...

...what difference did it make?

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 23 - 2014 - SECTOR V TREEHOUSE**

Number Two loved his job; he loved his life. He could listen in on KND transmissions, even the ones not limited to his sector (he'd have to thank the TND for that position) and be the most alert during missions. It made him feel...omnipresent...whatever that meant...

Number Two ran his daily systems and communications check with ease, as his chair swiveled back and forth, he flipped the switches needed for authentication, control, and monitoring. And before he knew it, Sector V's communication systems were now in sync with the rest of the KND frequencies on Earth.

But was his work truly done? Oh no. He had to establish contact with the Moon Base next.

Number 362 had changed her codes recently, so this one would be tricky. Two pulled his magic on the keyboard, and before he himself knew it, the Moon Base frequencies were in sync.

But was his work truly done? Oh no. He had to establish contact with the Outer Rim bases next. He grinned at this part, mainly because it made a rad sound when it worked.

Luckily for him, the Outer Rim bases hadn't reported anything about their codes being changed, so this would be much easier than the Moon Base.

He prepared for authentication to come through, and that sweet, sweet sound!

**_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ **

Wait, that wasn't the sound he wanted!

That was the near opposite of the sound he wanted!

It made him jump out of his seat, causing him to fall down. Shaking his head as the sound kept going on, he looked at the monitor detailing the communications error.

"Huh?" he said, now a little calmer, "That's weird..." He tried a recalibration of the system settings...

**_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ **

...only to be met with that same stupid sound.

Maybe if he tried calibrating the frequency for each individual planet, "Uh...Pluto Base? Come in Pluto Base. This is Number Two of the Kids Next Door Sector V on Earth. Please stop eating or something and respond!"

No response.

**_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ **

Number Two's panic modes were beginning to rise quite quickly. Was this an attack by Father? Or the Boss? Whatever notorious adult was behind it, if one KND base was out of sync, the entire system could fall apart! Then, an even worse thought came to mind: if Pluto Base was experiencing the effects of some kind of virus, or invasion, who knows how long it would take for the other bases to be infected!

"Number One'll kill me!" Two exclaimed, and quickly brought up a program that ran calibrations on all the frequency codes, and to his horror, it was just as he feared.

"That can't be good!" he proclaimed.

"No, that can't be good at all!" he proclaimed again as various computer screens detailed that there was no signal on Jupiter Base, Pluto Base, Saturn Base, Venus Base, and Uranus Base...

**_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO  
_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO  
_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO  
_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ **

As what was once the easiest job became a possible catastrophe, he felt a bit of pressure on his wrists...

**_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO WEE-DOO_ ** **_WEE-DOO_ **

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEVELOPER'S JOURNAL - CHAPTER 2: A Future with Fuse
> 
> It was probably a mistake to say that the next chapter would come 1 week after the first. But hey, just in time (a little late) for Cartoon Network's 25th Anniversary!
> 
> So, you may have a lot of questions, but some are best left unanswered, but do express your concerns in a PM or review.
> 
> Now, in terms of characters, it may seem confusing as to why I'm jumping straight into the full character roster and introducing character relationships without any introduction, like how and why Finn the Human is in the normal world and how does he know Ben. Trust me when I say that it's all a part of the grand-er design. It may not be obvious now, but I have big plans for all of this. As to what the hell an 'anthro' is, it is the term used for an anthropomorphic animal that shares certain human characteristics, such as bi-pedal walking, talking, having jobs, talking, sharing human lifespans, and talking. Its going to be my go-to explanation for animal characters like Mordecai & Rigby, Gumball & Darwin, Lazlo and co., etc. Animals who aren't anthros are called non-anthros, and for those types to talk or walk is a very rare phenomenon, like with Courage the Cowardly Dog, Scooby-Doo, Dukey from JT, or Munroe, for some examples.
> 
> Also, if the visual image I presented of the Future wasn't convincing enough, then I recommend referencing FusionFall: Legacy's impressive version of Tech Square. You can find their showcase video on their YouTube channel, and I based my tech square off of theirs...or, I tried to.
> 
> I should also stress what I said about the reviews. I only got 2 for the first chapter, which is fine, but please, do more. It's an amazing feeling to get reviews. To see others across the country, or even around the world, admire your work gives this feeling of professionalism that can't be obtained by being a normal kid at school. Though after this chapter, I'll be taking a small and very short hiatus from this story, because school is happening now, and I have to get back into the mood, especially since my school uses the IGCSE system, and some of our mock papers are this month.
> 
> Anyway, I'll be seeing you next time!
> 
> NEXT CHAPTER: Get REddy
> 
> -end transmission


	3. Chapter 3: Get REddy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold = Emphasis/Commentary
> 
> Italic = Emphasis/small memory moment
> 
> [] = Artificial Intelligence/Android Speech

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015 - SECTOR V - HERO'S SQUARE**

It would be an understatement to say Ben loved statues.

No doubt they could be creepy as hell, of course. The idea of a figure being trapped in one position, never to return or strike back was a sad fate to be in, to be immortalized through. But what Ben Tennyson loved about them is that it could provide guidance, inspiration, hope for a brighter future. Eventually, when he could change his name to Ben 10,000, he too would get a statue erected in his honor. It would be awesome. Ben actively waited for that kind of day to come. In fact, he wouldn't have minded it happening a little earlier.

What Ben saw before him was not how he had pictured this to happen. It was the sight of Hero's Square, at Sector V - or whatever was left of it - with a statue erected in his honor, that made him think otherwise.

The thought of him being considered dead was one thing, to be kept up as a false sense of hope. Seeing others, like Blossom, Number One, and now Finn, alongside him in a pantheon of heroes was another thing entirely. It was heavy on his head to deal with: they were dead, they couldn't be brought back, and now their images, the ones that had inspired so many, and pushed people to be better than even themselves, were being used as nothing but protest boards. They were only there to remind the remaining heroes that there was still something to fight for, with their cheerful faces in an immovable stasis. But no matter how manny cheerful faces they carved and created, they were all behind an immovable truth.

Statues were creepy that way.

To be trapped in one position, never to see the light of day again, never to _move_ again, never to return...

...never to strike back...

Were they like statues right now?

Insignificant pieces of pebble that Fuse would step on...and crush?

Dexter had certainly fit in that position, as a few hours earlier, Ben had found no trace of his friend on any of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s that made it out of Tech Square. It was sad, that Dexter not only failed in getting out of Tech Square, but also failed in the one thing he had to do...

...and that even that was a pointless effort.

The teenaged hero tried to distract himself from the immovable fate before him, and walked around the monument slowly, but it didn't help. He saw the wounded below the statues, their agony reflected on him, he could almost feel their pain. He saw by the west end an orange dog, crouched up in a fetal position, and instantly recognized him as Jake, Finn's adoptive brother from Ooo. Ben looked at him with sadness, he knew what it was like to lose someone in the family, but he couldn't bring himself to comfort him. So he kept walking away, speechless and thoughtless.

Behind him was the Sector V treehouse - or what ever was left of it anyway - that reached the corner of Ben's eye, and tried to make him turn around. The treehouse was slanted, leaning on the edge of fate as their position was being forgotten quickly; word was that Sector V got themselves a massive anti-gravity generator from Dexlabs, and their base became a floating island (held down by many chains of course), but an attack from Fusion Number Two had occured, using bomb-like fusion monsters to damage the generator, and nearly resulting in the fall of Sector V. It remained slanted, but unlike the tower of Pisa which had a feeling of mystery and beauty to it, this was frightening at best.

Ben didn't look though, and continued walking around Hero's Square, no matter how much it taunted him. He pondered on what he had to do next. They had gotten out of Tech Square, but now what? The time machine wouldn't be finished for days, and there wasn't much he could do. Hell, he wasn't even sure that the time machine could be completed at all. He thought about going to a terrafuser, any terrafuser, and just waiting for spawns, or monsters to jump out. He hoped so that could transform into Wildmutt, or Humungousaur, both of which prevented him from normal speech, so he could just pound them and pound them for all that was lost, until he eventually tired out. But that wouldn't bring this anymore towards the end, right?

He sat down to contemplate, on whatever could come to his mind at the moment.

The alien hero then heard a bit of static in his ears, the nanites in them were vibrating, trying to work something out, but what? The vibrating became less and less, as the static turned to words, and words to sentences. At that point, Ben heard a _very_ familiar voice in his head.

[Good afternoon, Benjamin] said a voice, that Ben turned around to face, but surprisingly, no person was there. He tried to observe his surroundings more carefully, speculating that this was just some bad prank. He turned around again, but this time he faced something rather unexpected: it had the colors of a standard-issue Dexbot, royal blue with green and aquamarine highlights, but the design of this one had obviously much more advanced hardware; a white glow emanated from inside its model and its overall body had...a more...uh...f-feminine shape...

"C-Computress?"

[Correct] she replied, [I am relieved to see that you escaped Tech Square unharmed. Many soldiers are seeing your arrival as a sign of hope, and it is quite relieving on my end as well.] Ben was flabbergasted by all that, a sign of hope? Him? How could there be a sign of hope when the sign of hope couldn't hope for an ounce of hope? [Before we can reconstruct the time machine, you must learn vital pieces of information that, when necessary, will increase our advantage in the Fusion War]

"O-One at a time, what?"

[Theory - you have been through much within the past 2 hours, you much have questions for what you have seen, or moreso, experienced in the heat of battle] analyzed the AI. [Are you satisfied with my analysis?]

"One thing doesn't add up, though" he said. "Uh...w-what's...with the...uh"

[This model was created to store and mobilize my hard-drive] said Computress, [Product Result: Successful; Importance Percentile - 15-27 - Not important]

"S-Sure" said Ben, feeling very uncomfortable about the AI's new look. He quickly changed the subject to something else. "My-My ears, huh?"

[I told you that day that we would be setting up a communications channel, no? Argument - illogical]

"What? I wasn't able to contact you at all! It must've been broken or something when I got here!" Ben exclaimed. "Your argument is illogical!"

[Impossible, I am an artificial intelligence housed in an android model. I define logic] said Computress bluntly, but that only made the retort worse for Ben, [Inquiry: Where did you think I would place our communications channel?]

"I dunno, a NANOCOM?!"

[Argument #3 - Illogical; NanoComs were not prepped for that type of activity at the tim-] said Computress, halting in her own words, [information reassessment begi- This argument is illogical; analysis proves the hub stationed in your nanites seemed to have failed in entry to the timestream]

Wonderful, Ben thought, my best friend just died and I got burned by his computer.

[There is plenty to do in the meantime of waiting for the time machine] Computress explained, [You obviously have many questions, Mr. Tennyson, follow me for answers]

He figured from that point that she didn't have the 'answers', she obviously was busy guiding the other fusion fighters and making sure they stay alive. The only other person with 'answers' was...the other guy.

"Are we...going to see him?"

[Affirmative, Benjamin,] said Computress, turning her floating mechanized body towards the hero. [It is time for you to meet Simon Astronomonov.]

Reluctantly, Ben thought.

* * *

He stepped into the dark, isolated room in the Treehouse with no hesitation. Dark rooms would normally irk him, or make him extremely cautious. But he felt so much anger that he couldn't give a damn about what was around him.

The guy he was meeting, on the other hand, he didn't want to give a damn about, because of how much he had played 'the villain' within one day. And it pained Ben to have to realize that ultimately...

...he was his last hope.

As expected, the large black & red doors slid open, and the blinding red lights from the room shined on Ben's face, and quickly refocused to find himself in a crimson red laboratory. It must have been off-site, because Mandark wouldn't have normally come to Sector V, much less its Treehouse, to work.

"I have been expecting you, Benjamin," said Mandark, behind his large chair. Ben returned no response, however.

In fact, Mandark could hear heavy breathing. Restrained, but heavy. The clenching of fists was also a somewhat audible sound within the silent distance between them.

"We...have much to discuss...regarding the time machine." he said. No response.

"You...must also have some questions about what you were able to do back there, as well as what you saw Number Two and Dexter do...no?" he asked. No response.

"Is there...something you would like to say?" he asked. Response.

Ben gritted his teeth again under his lips, and tried to hide his trembling fists. "You should have saved them. You should have saved them all back in Tech Square." Ben started to say, "You should have called it in when you had the chance."

"Well," the scientist began, after a brief pause, "I did not. I could have, but I did not, and there is not much I can do about it. I am sorry."

"You should have saved them." Ben continued to repeat, "you were supposed to; it would hav-"

"'Supposed to'?" he said, his voice very nonchalant. "No, I do not believe in fate. It stops me from making conscientious decisions."

"Yet you forgot about the one conscientious decision that _mattered_."

Mandark paused in typing, and turned around in his swiveling chair, revealing himself to the person behind him. His wardrobe remained uncannily unchanged from how Ben saw him last. He still sported that same tie, white shirt, and striped suspenders, with the only thing standing out being a pair of dress pants, rather than shorts.

"And what, pray tell, may that be," Mandark said, now looking Ben directly in the eye, behind his large, thick, crescent-shaped glasses. "The loss of my friend, or the fact that we now have the most _crucial_ advantage to winning this year-long war?"

Ben could only get more angry at this appearance, because last time, Mandark thought himself to be proactive by adding an extra force that could have destroyed the first terrafusers, but, as both of them knew well, that didn't work and everything went to hell.

That same thing happened yet again, and Mandark thought he was saving time and increasing chances of success...yet again.

Those same clothes weren't odd to Ben, they were just a sign that some people just don't change.

"I don't know, which one matters more _to you_?"

"Both, Mr. Tennyson." Mandark responded, "But as history has proven over and over again, no one gets more than one gift in life, not even a Morebuck." Noticing Ben's flabbergasted expression, Mandark forced himself to continue, "It would just be up to you, or myself, to assess the situation accordingly." The cold-hearted genius turned around and resumed typing.

"And boy did you do a good job..." Ben muttered, finding himself turning towards a dilapidated advertisement for Mandark Industries. Its ever-so-famous slogan read 'Genius by any standard'.

"'Genius by any standard', huh?" Ben said, catching Mandark's attention. "Does that count for genocidal stupidity?!"

Mandark did nothing to seem anymore enraged by Ben's insults, and simply turned back to Ben. "I am sorry, but these ignorant and frustrated attacks on me are not going to help anyone right now." Mandark said, the tone in his voice rising steadily. "No one committed genocide but Fuse. I cannot be blamed for what Fuse did, and what happened was a consequence of insufficient aid and forces."

"Well WHAT DID YOU THINK, _GENIUS_?! WHAT MADE YOU THINK THAT DITCHING YOUR FRIEND WOULD HAVE HELPED ANYMORE?!" said Ben, as angry as a pack of bulls. "You may have been Dexter's best friend, and his rival, but what else were you? You weren't there when we _needed_ you the most. You probably already predicted the whole time jump error thing, and you knew when I could have come! You knew about his plans to send someone back to the past! But he risked his life, and _everyone else's life_ just to get those plans to you!" Ben shouted across the laboratory, expecting a response from the cold, calculating scientist.

But he didn't. As a matter of fact, Mandark stood there, his head tilted slightly down in shame. But his guilt quickly disappeared and he retorted as fast as a road runner would with a coyote.

"You've seen what those creatures can truly do, right?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"Did you _really_ look around you?" asked Mandark. "Did you see how many people were dying, being ripped apart, dying of fusion matter infection, or even _drinking a glass of water_?! Our forces are stretched out at the maximum possible level, and we could possibly be _all_ that is left of this planet. As for the people who died back there? Half of them suffered those excruciating paths so you could even be _alive_. _Here and now_. So before you come here, and barrage me with your _pitiful_ micro-aggressions, _you understand_ that the fusions would have followed us here if there was an early evacuation; we needed to convince them that they had won the battle!"

"That's not good enough damnit!" Ben said, slamming his hand down on the table.

"Well then, what would you change?! What would you change?!" shouted Mandark, causing Ben to retreat in thought. "Precisely my point, the present is past, but the future is still the future. The only way _you_ could ever undo all of this is to get into that time machine, when it is ready."

"W-what if nothing works out?" asked Ben, "What if you _screw_ this up again, and everything goes to hell?!"

"Scientists sometimes believe in coincidences, but we do not believe in failure." he explained, "All we believe in is results. So, you shall see for yourself."

Mandark and Ben were silent for a while after that, both somewhat exhausted from their argument. Mandark, however, was not yet finished, and continued on.

"If you think that I didn't regret sending out the call earlier, I did," said Mandark, "But it was 100 people...over 5,000."

"It's not good enough." Ben repeated.

"Dexter would have made the same judgement, no matter how cold, so you could make it here." Mandark attempted to reason. "I know because he...he was my friend too...he was never able to predict me, yet I was always able to predict him..."

Ben found himself defeated in this argument, and exerted whatever hate he had for one, final insult: "You're a real prick, y'know?"

Mandark ignored the insult, turned around, and resumed work on his computer. But he found himself to have halted in typing, and his mouth moving. "Scientists sometimes believe in coincidences, and while your time of arrival proved itself to be one, the circumstances that lead up to this...could not have been any kind of coincidence. If anything, I could go as far as to say...it is a blessing."

Ben raised a brow at what Mandark said. "I thought you _didn't_ believe in fate."

"You do not have to believe in fate to disregard the scientifically questionable."

Once again, silence consumed the room, as Mandark waited hesitantly for Ben's response.

"You really do...don't you?" he asked. Mandark only looked at the alien hero with a hidden expression due to his glasses, and returned to his work.

* * *

Number Five marched her way to Hero's Square. She was tired, obviously, and her legs were aching from so much running back in Tech Square. Going back and forth from S.C.A.M.P.E.R to S.C.A.M.P.E.R had been both terrifying and exhausting, so much so that she could have dropped on the ground at that very moment. But she knew she couldn't.

The mission alert she received from Computress was a priority-1 level to it. Whatever the mission was, it had to be related to Ben. That was all the talk going around Sector V at the moment. Ben, Ben, Ben. There were whispers, or even shouts and jumps of joy. Five didn't understand that. Just because _one_ guy came from the past, it wouldn't mean that all is hunky-dory. No, _one_ guy from the past with absolutely no intention of coming here wouldn't even know his way back home. Sure, she had some enthusiasm, as did Finn.

And look where that got 'im.

She didn't understand any of it. None of it at all, and then she saw the people who thought alike. Jake the Dog was still sitting there, all miserable. She didn't have the strength to tell him how Finn died, or whether or not it meant anything in the long run. She was the only one to see the kid meet his end, but she pushed it down deep inside, so much so that she couldn't possibly remember herself. Finn did something similar, she remembered, he had a 'vault' in his noggin where all the trauma and confusion went forever.

Wait, no. No, no, no. She regretted even thinking about it. And down into the vault it went.

She focused towards Computress' mobile body, with her mission assignment ready at hand.

"You asked for me?" Number Five said to Computress once she got near enough.

[Greetings, Number Five] Computress greeted her with pre-programmed joyful voice. [I am happy to see you made it out of Tech Square! New mission - Detail?]

"Sure."

[Mission brief - loading] Computress loaded the mission within milliseconds, [Operation: Investigation; Relaying Providence data: An unnamed citizen was found in the Goat's Junkyard Infected Zone. Providence agents have retrieved him, and have attempted interrogation. Unusual aspects: the boy seems to be rambling, saying that something of great importance was lost to fusion monsters before him being found by our forces. Subject is asking to go retrieve this item.]

"So what? You want me to step into hell to get the kid's action figure?" Five asked irritably.

[Not necessarily; Observe: reports from last week put together by the Urban Rangers Science Division show signs of unknown disturbances in the Junkyard, unlike that of the usual fusion-matter infection and gravitational anomalies. They say it was emanating from a specific center point.]

"And?"

[The boy's ramblings include knowledge of science pertaining to quantum mechanics and relative theory, and the strange disturbances seem to have some co-relation.] Computress finished. [I would like you to investigate this to find the co-relation]

"And prove what theory?"

[Working theory: disturbances related to relative theory - may help in reconstruction of the time machine] Computress explained. [Mission priority: High; Recommended to accept - A companion will be waiting for you when you arrive to help you with this important task; do you accept the mission, Number Five?]

"Yeah." Five responded without much thought. Conveniently the S.C.A.M.P.E.R was exactly where she last parked it. She ran towards the hulking green ship and slid open its large door. The whole time, Computress was simply watching her from behind. Five found it suspicious as to why. The AI must have really regarded this mission to be of the highest importance, so much so that every move Five took, it was towards the theory that could save the world a whole lot faster.

As that was running through her head, she sat down on the pilot seat. With everything ready, she began ignition, and the S.C.A.M.P.E.R scampered away into the sky. The thought of the war finishing earlier still ran through Five's head, as she was finally able to understand the cheeriness of the other fusion fighters.

But as the route was set towards Peach Creek Estates, logic overwrote her hopes and drive with suspense and tension. What would happen if Computress was wrong? What if the kid really did just lose some toy? What if those readings from the Urban Rangers were as truthful as their kid who had a "living piece of wood", but in actuality anything "living" about it was just drawn on with crayon?

With this war, it was all an open book. Wasn't it?

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 24 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE**

With all of her strength, Susan pushed the ratchet down to tighten the last programming screw for the regulator. She had to admit, it was a really nice idea from Dexter. They were based off an insult from Dexter's sister: something about 'spending all day in the lab tightening stuff'.

That just sounded contrived.

Everyone in the lab was on overdrive. Scientists Susan and her sister had the pride of hatching a possible plan of retrieving the lost subject through a yet to be determined form of "chronal extraction". Their plan also specified a machine was needed for the extraction, but what good could a machine do if it didn't actually work at all? That was what the others had doubts about when they were first explaining their idea, as the physics behind remotely extracting someone out of another time period could end up having disastrous outcomes. But they theorized that since that they could analyze the tachyon infused DNA samples that were left behind when Ben was sent away, and reconstitute Ben from the particle up by harnessing the tachyon radiation. It seemed like a long shot, and definitely a plan with holes in it, but at least Dexter had confidence in their plan.

But she couldn't exactly find herself in a pleasant mood with Dexter at the moment, not even to praise the guy for a complement, and neither could anyone else. While they looked busy, all the employees walked around with great reluctance over this huge mess up, along with one other particular predicament. After that punishment he just served, no one was allowed to leave the building until 8PM. Last she checked, that was a complete violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Even worse, there were only five hours left in their non-stop work, and in the _three_ hours of work, surrounded by geniuses with higher IQs than Einstein himself when combined, there was not a single _ounce_ of work done that could have been beneficial in the slightest. Furthermore, Computress had been trying her damn best to work out several algorithms and equations to help out. But if even _none of those ideas_ could lead anywhere when worked out over the course of three hours, let alone the fact that an A.I is drawing blanks there, what made Dexter believe that _the humans_ could do any better in five more hours?!

It really racked her brains. Hell, all this repetitive action made her as confused as her sister, Mary. She didn't even know what program the screw she was tightening had in it, and she certainly didn't know whether or not it would help at all.

She and Mary weren't the only ones upset. Over by the corner, Chemistry Intern Anthony Automata and Dr. Xyrespace were trying to fix a faulty scanner, complaining about their predicament. Xyrespace was worried her teenage daughter would be okay without her or wouldn't get too worried, while Automata (being 19 years old) tried to reassure her that her daughter would be fine. One of the lab assistants, Fassy Mojomac, was singing quietly while collecting damaged wires and circuit boards, "Dexter and Benjy, sittin' in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G."

But Susan knew better than that. Dexter was probably only concerned about his integrity. Maybe it did have something to do with his long-lost friendship with the Tennyson kid, but having worked for him for about a year, she found it extremely hard to believe.

Her NanoCom began ringing and buzzing on the hard metal plating, causing the surface to loudly vibrate. Susan immediately reached for the device, trying to silence it. If Dexter heard so much as a millisecond's worth of audio, or even a vibration, they could have been subjugated to _more_ work hours. She quietly pressed the call button and spoke to the person on the other side.

"Not right now, I'm being held-" She whispered, only to be interrupted by a much louder, but relaxed voice.

_"Hello to you too, evil sis!"_

Susan let out a loud sigh, and with reluctance spoke into the phone (still careful to speak too loud). "Hey Johnny."

 _"That's better."_ Her younger brother told her. _"It's past 3:00 here in Porkbelly, and you two ain't here, so when'ya coming back home?"_

"Yeah, about that, our shift doesn't end for another 5 hours. And then of course it's the 2-hour flight from Siyenn City to Seattle, then another 2-hour flight from Washington to Alberta, then a 45 minute drive from the airport to our neighborhood. We're not coming back anytime soon."

"It's because we have to work overtime today." Mary pipped in.

"Yeah, we have to work overtime today." Susan repeated. "Some mess with one of Dex's experiments with a human test subject and stuff - I'm sure you know."

 _"You try sneaking out?"_ Johnny suggested, _"Trust me, it always works out...for me anyway."_

"First, that's illegal." Susan said, "Second, I wish. But Dexter just upgraded his system security protocols. Ones that we helped administer, so we're very well stuck here until we get back the lost subject."

 _"Boooo!"_ yelled someone else from the hall. _"That's illegal itself! Directly against the Fair Labor Standards Act, 193-crap, my coffee!"_

Susan winced at the thought of that image, and later she rolled her eyes. She kept warning Dukey to not keep the coffee so hot.

 _"So, I'm in the lab right now, and I was just wondering,"_ Johnny asked, _"any tests you left for me? Or Dukey? Hopefully me?_ _"_

Susan put some thought to that. Johnny's relationship with them was distant due to these new jobs they had in America. They barely got to hang out anymore, or even go on some bizarre (mis)adventure in their quiet town.

"Uh...Mary! Did we make any new stuff off-late?"

"For what?"

"Y'know, for Johnny."

Mary took a while to respond, trying to remember if she had done anything like that recently. Then, as if a light bulb was lit, Mary's mouth opened with realization and she quietly gestured for her sister's NanoCom, speaking into the device when she received it.

"Okay, I've got something for you. You know that closet in the back-right corner?"

 _"You mean the only closet in the lab?"_ Johnny corrected her, _"How many garage labs have more than 2 closets, let alone a closet?"_

"Not important. There's a table right around that area. I've created a new formula for a speed-enhancing drug. I'd tell you the science, but knowing you-"

 _"I wouldn't care at all. Yeah I found it."_ Johnny confirmed. _"Exactly how fast could I go on this?"_

"Theoretically? Mach 2, at the very most. Then again, that's for you to test yourself."

_"Okay...would it affect any of my...other powers?"_

Mary flinched at the mere words that came out the NanoCom. She _really_ did not like thinking about that. She remembered being grounded for a good _6 months_ by their psycho dad because of an unforeseen side-effect that showed itself last year. See, in lack of a lab rat, they used their naive and stupid brother for _all_ of their experiments, and even granted intelligence and speech to a non-anthro dog. One of the experiments involved _amputating Johnny's foot_ for a twisted university demonstration. But most of them involved granting Johnny incredible mutant superpowers. Little did they know that their continued altercations on their brother's genetic code would be permanent, and thus, all of his former powers emerged five years later. "Probably would, but in the good way. The kind where you could run at the speed of sound as a cheetah."

 _"Awesome. Finally, why super-speed?"_ Johnny asked. _"Have you two been reading too many comics or what?"_

"N-noo..." Mary tried saying without spilling the beans. Unfortunately, despite what they were doing at Dexlabs, she wasn't a very good liar. "(Sigh) Y-yes..."

"AM I DETECTING NON-IONIZING RADIO WAVES?!" screamed an agitated redhead from across the lab. "YOU KNOW WHAT THE SLIGHTEST FORM OF RADIATION CAN DO TO THESE EXPERIMENTS!"

"Crap! He's actually got a geiger counter on him!" Susan realized. "Why?!"

"I dunno!" Mary responded frantically. She quickly took the phone from Susan and spoke hastily into it. "Okay, gotta go, Johnny!"

 _"Wait, hu-"_ Johnny tried to ask, before being cut-off. Susan quickly snatched back her phone from Mary and put it back in her pocket. That was when Dexter came marching through to the center of the lab, so as to face everybody.

"I THOUGHT I MADE IT PERFECTLY CLEAR FOR OUR OWN SAFETY: **NO NANOCOMS!** "

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE**

The room was still silent. Both Ben and Mandark were still calming down after their own individual outbursts, and no one had said anything for a good 12 minutes. Ben looked at Mandark to see if he would say anything, but behind those thick, reflective glasses he couldn't tell at all. He wasn't even sure Mandark knew what he was thinking at the moment.

Mandark gave him a small glare. "So? Are we going to stop sitting like ducks and get on with it?"

Ben looked up at the guy with a blank face. "You don't have much experience with aftermaths of fights, do you?"

"Nonsense, of course I do. Dexter and I used to fight all the time. We would even try to steal each others' inventions. But we would not argue about something as ridiculous as earlier."

"I'm sure that's true..." Ben sardonically retorted.

"Let us divert the attention to some long unanswered questions." Mandark began. "As you most likely saw Dexter and Number Two do-"

Ben knew exactly what Mandark was referring to, and immediately interrupted him. "Yeah, what the hell was that?! They just give life to something new and small and cute and they literally just kill it?!"

Mandark didn't say anything to dispel that belief, nothing yet at least. It annoyed the hell out of Ben.

"Aren't you gonna say anything?"

"Hmm? Oh good, you are finished whining," said Mandark, turning his head, "they did not kill it. They stored it, in the same subspace that NanoComs use. They just had to convert it to there for immediate use."

Immediately after that, he pulled up a red holographic keyboard and began typing on it rapid fast. Before Ben was a projection of one of the miniaturized characters that formed from that moment back in Tech Square. Only, this one was different. It had no defining attributes, no characteristics aside from its entire body shown being entirely green. The hologram was transparent enough where it almost looked like cellophane, and with that Ben could also see a glowing "mage orb of energy" (as Kevin once called it) within the character. Was that some kind of power? Was it representing what these things could do? So many questions came to his mind, he almost didn't know where to begin. So he tried asking the most relevant question.

"What are those things?" he asked with a much more interested expression.

"We call them nanos; created from a reaction between a reprocessed form of fusion matter and imagination energy. Since both reactants are similar in qualities, such as their processes being continuous, they can react surprisingly easily. We heat the solution to reach a dynamic equilibrium, rendering the process in a constant share of particles, and since fusion matter can transcend in physical form, so can the 'reaction'. Utilizing a DNA sample, sometimes from a fusion, we can give the Nano a small amount of traits belonging to the DNA sample, creating a nano." Mandark explained, and he could clearly see it was fascinating Ben, and also drawing up some questions in his mind. "However, because of the connection fusion matter has with its creator, the reaction can be made unstable. So we have to trap them in our NanoComs, where they can be used effectively, and powerfully."

"So, why did you guys model them after us heroes?" Ben asked. "I mean, it's nice to have living chibi fan-art floating around my head, but they aren't floating around my head, they're floating around in the Lyoko sub-space. You focused so much time to make Buttercup's nano end up as bug-eyed and cute as possible, you probably wasted time in increasing their power range and making the transmission into the sub-space less complex."

Mandark went silent. His lips slowly opened, but it was clearly forced, like bread cut by a knife, as if all he wanted to do was acknowledge but not admit that what he had done was a _horrible_ mistake.

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015 - TOWNSVILLE SUBURBS - PEACH CREEK ESTATES**

Five looked out the window of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R, seconds away from landing in the Peach Creek commons, the Cul-de-Sac of the Peach Creek Estates area. She saw a figure walking towards the vehicle, and as the figure became more clear she realized who Computress had paired her up with.

"Oh no..." she murmured to herself. She also understood what she was in for.

The girl stood out among the camps of KND and Providence, who were all in uniform while she wasn't. She wore a simple pink dress that had a wing collar, and a black headband in her hair; it was akin to what a child would wear at age 7. She also wore a pantyhose and Mary-Jane shoes. In the center of her dress was a bright flower...that was decaying. Her ears had upside-down pentagram earrings, and her hair was short, styled in the shape of a crescent moon.

"Well, well." said the girl with little emotion, and a poor attempt at sarcasm. "If it isn't Abby Lincoln, as I live and breathe, which by the way," the girl paused for a moment, "I hear Dexter isn't doing so well on right now."

"You're pushin' it, Mandy."

"Whatever," said Mandy, "maybe I should tell you all the other things I heard about."

"Seriously," said Five, with a much more stern look on her face, " **stop**."

Mandy's sniveling smile, which hid behind a bored pout, faded away as the seriousness in Number Five's voice became evident. She remained silent, logically determining what to say next, but nothing came to mind. Pain was prevalent in Five's face, and she thought 'why break what's already broken?'

"Sure." she said, "You ready to go?"

Five gave a scoff, but with no smirk to it. "I was gonna ask _you_ that."

They walked through the remains of the Cul-de-Sac. To be fair, there weren't any remains yet, but Fuse's armies had certainly learned enough to ravage the place. Pebbles were rising into the air, houses were sinking, and worse, the fortress was falling to pieces. Edd, one of the three con-artists who was helping run the campaign against Fuse, commissioned their personal geek-squad (they called themselves the Urban Rangers) to build a great wall that would protect the Cul-de-Sac as a fortress. The interesting thing about this fortress was that it was made out of...cardboard.

Mandy remembered Edd nervously explaining to Dexter about what was so special about that cardboard. Apparently, the cons had stockpiled on _cardboard boxes from_ _Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends_. She remembered Mandark saying there was a radiation signature or something on those boxes, and it was identical to the one given off by imagination energy. Mandy chuckled to herself, it was amazing what kind of safety could be brought from the simpler things.

It was almost a reassuring sight, especially since Mandy was a born nihilist. That peace was short-lived, though, as angry shouting and whining was heard at the end of the Cul-de-Sac. It came from a short kid, with a near-shaven head that practically had three strands of hair left. His face was tomato-red with fury as he sat on a cardboard throne. Somehow, his yellow shirt and purple sweatpants were in perfect condition, compared to the fusion-matter stained clothing of...everyone else. He saw Five and Mandy walk towards him, and sat up from his throne with a huff to 'greet' them.

"Oh joy," said Mandy, "there comes Mr. Wunderkind."

"That's the best insult you've got?" Five said as Eddy was within earshot. "It's not even an insult, really."

"So what is?" Mandy asked stoically, "He's already an asshole…and everything else in the book of swear."

"Fair 'nough," concluded Five. "Let's talk to him." Both of the girls turned their heads to face Eddy's cardboard throne, only to find it was empty. They looked down, and saw Eddy, looking annoyed, right in front of them.

"'The hell do you two want?" asked Eddy, 'greeting' them. He turned to Five, "We don't have any jawbreakers!"

"Sure y'don't." Five said. Usually she would smile. But this wasn't 'usually'. "How 'bout we get serious. We need a transport to get to the Goat's Junkyard infected zone."

"Well, you've got a S.C.A.M.P.E.R, use it." Eddy retorted bluntly. "We don't got anything to give to you."

Five couldn't help but chuckle at that. "a S.C.A.M.P.E.R? For real?! You really want Fuse to see somethin's up? To follow it right back here?"

That punched the smirk right off Eddy's face. He hadn't even told the two about the infiltration problems they've been experiencing, and the thought of Fuse finding better ways to penetrate their defenses was nerve-wracking. He, reluctantly, decided to comply.

"Well...I-I mean, we-we've got...thooose guys." Eddy said with a lot of reluctance, pointing to the two green monkeys in white and purple armor. They, much like their master, had tunics over their heads to cover up their mutated brains. They all wore purple jumpsuits with white armor, with jetpacks on each of their backs. They were having cans of beer next to their tent at the edge of the wall. One of them looked like he had passed out on the grass.

"Sky Monkeys." Five realized. "Yeah, we'll take 'em."

To that, Eddy winced. "Um...okay. You...uh...said it was the Junkyard you needed to go to?"

Five and Mandy exchanged looks. Both nodded in response.

"Well, could ya spare a few minutes for a side mission?" Eddy asked. "Our rations stock has been decreasing at a really steep rate, and I wanted to-"

"Probably because you hid it all in your cardboard highchair." Mandy interrupted.

Just as she had said that, a random but injured and frail Urban Ranger walked around, and said "He did. We've caught him doing it like ten times." Five and Mandy exchanged glances and quickly turned back with a raised brow on Eddy.

But he simply ignored it and kept talking. "Look, we were going to find out what's been causing this, so our tech-heads found a pattern, and it leads to the Junkyard, so..."

"You think fusions are taking your goods." Mandy sarcastically retorted. "They just - found their way into a wall they've been trying to break for the last year, and took weapons they probably don't even need."

"Look around you, dummy!" Eddy retorted, extending his arms and pointing to the desolate Cul-de-Sac. " _We_ need those supplies! Who's to say Fuse needs 'em, he's just tryin' to take from us!"

Out in the distance of the guarded neighborhood, Five could have sworn to have heard someone call out "BULL". She only added it to her mental image of Eddy.

"Remind us _why_ we should help a snobfest like you?" said Mandy...is what someone'd expect to hear, when in fact it was Number Five who had said it. Mandy had simply opened her mouth, and was surprised to find Five playing the Bad Cop in their duo.

"Because, Abigail," Eddy continued, his use of Five's real name did not disturb her, "I know you have a secret, a dark secret for when you're alone. It'll certainly cause some talks, some hype, you know the dealio," Five feigned a look of hidden horror. This was getting ridiculous, "I can only imagine what people'll be sayin'. Some might even spray you with cheese omelet, or the custard-guns. So whaddya say?"

Five leaned down to the snivelling little psychopath. "What's that? That I wear glasses?" She calmly said, while Eddy was immediately put off by that unexpected confidence.

"Y-y-you wear glasses?" Eddy said, nervously. "N-no, I was...uh...y'know, I was talking about the other dark thing..."

"Hmm, sure you were." "We'll just get your stuff back. Got it?"

"Y-yeah...thanks..."

With their side mission begrudgingly assigned, Five and Mandy began walking towards the tent where Computress had previously assigned them to go. Eddy immediately noticed and selfishly told them "Hey! Wrong way, girls!"

"No it ain't." Five said, as she kept walking forward towards the tent.

"Pathetic." Mandy muttered under her breath.

* * *

The tent was dark and dilapidated, stretching to the corners of the area. It was pinned to the wall of the fortress behind it to make it bigger, making it somewhat sideways. On the inside were several destroyed pieces of 2x4 technology laid on makeshift repair tables and Providence arsenals on the left and right sides of the tent. Five and Mandy immediately spotted a skinny 14 to 15 year old boy sitting down on one of the cleared tables. He had curly hair that rolled back at the top of his head, while his cranium had little spikes of hair poking out. He wore glasses (broken ones at that) and a blue, fusion matter-stained turtleneck shirt with brown cargo shorts. And to top it off, he was panting.

An adult Providence agent approached them. He took one glance at each of them, from head to toe, "This 'the best they could send?" He remarked; he noticed how both looks on the two girls' faces weren't deterred by his comment. To shake an incoming argument off, he smiled behind his mask, and chuckled a little to try to make it sound like a joke.

No it wasn't, they both thought as they walked past the agent and approached the boy.

"Yo," Five greeted, "you there?"

His attention, surprisingly, was not elsewhere as he jolted his head up to see both Five and Mandy in front of him. He was somewhat speechless, seeing two people that he had heard much about. To him, they were like timeless legends, the kind that never go away. This put Five and Mandy off. It was the apocalypse. How could anyone be joyful in a time like this?

"'Think that's a yeah." Five surmised. The boy's wide-eyed expression wasn't giving much away. "You got a name?"

"Y-Yeah..." the boy slowly, "My name's Otto...Otto Osworth- but why is that important?!"

The girls once again exchanged looks. This kid was full of surprises, he acts like he was traumatized in Vietnam, yet here he was now talking faster than the Flash.

"W-Whaddy'a mean?" Five asked with bewilderment.

"The mission!" Otto exclaimed. "Y'knowtheonethatthefloatingcomputerladysentyouon? Togetmeandinvestigatesomethinginthejunkyard-C'mon, you had to be listening."

Five paused for a full 10 seconds. She leaned in close to Otto, in pure disbelief. " _You sent the mission_?"

"Yeah! Who'd you think it was, this guy?" Otto pointed to the same Providence agent from before. "He hates kids, y'know! He confessed 1 and a half hours ago!"

"He hasn't stopped talking for 1 and a half _hours_." the agent dully said. "We had to give him some fresh coffee to shut'm up."

Mandy internally facepalmed. "You _don't try to calm someone down with_ COFFEE, you MORON!" She found the mug Otto was drinking out of, picked it up, and 'carefully' dropped the thing into different pieces. She then went near the kid who was playing with his fingers while saying some weird irrelative stuff. "CALM THE HELL DOWN!" Mandy shouted into Otto's ear. Even though the tent was just a cloth tarp it felt like it echoed to every corner.

Otto tried to sit back up, that voice still ringing in her ears.

"Look, I just lost my robot friend's head in the Junkyard infected area, and it was some new tech that I think could actually change the war forever, y'know? I just need to get it back as fast as possible."

"A lotta kids think they can 'change the war forever'. What's making you so sure this is the one the professionals need to look at? Let alone that you think they're going to get your bot back for you?"

"It's...uh, c-complicated, I can explain when we're there."

Five took a long breath of decisiveness, and conceded to the kid's pleading. "The Junkyard's all the way over in Siyenn City, or whatever's left of it after the Battle..." Five explained, "and the infected zone has the most fusion matter poisoning than any of the others.

"Even more than- am I sayin' this right? Candy Cove?" The agent asked looking at his tablet. "That can't actually be its name, right?"

"Tell that to the big-ass pirate ship stuck right in the middle of it." Five remarked quickly, finding herself getting off-topic. "The name don't matter. We're gonna need some backup if we don't make it out of there alive."

The agent could see that Five was eyeballing his men. "You can't get some of your own soldiers?"

"Our guys are holdin' up fort here, and everywhere else. The KND ain't close to bein' finished, and we're pretty busy 'cause of it. But you dudes are just a Providence survivor cell, so you don't really got much to do anyway."

The agent remained in dead silence. Technically, Providence was over. It was just him and the remaining soldiers now. He had to concede to Five's demands, albeit reluctantly. "Take my guys. They can stand guard around the warp gate if the job needs to get done."

"Wonderful," said Mandy, followed by Otto as she was leaving the tent, "then let's move, people. Our chariot awaits."

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015 - SECTOR V TREEHOUSE**

"Do you remember the nanite event of 2011?" Mandark asked, continuing his discussion, or learning session, with Ben in the treehouse.

"How couldn't I?"

"Are you also aware of the multiple E.V.O disturb-"

Ben interrupted...again, "Dude, I already know this kind of stuff, I watch the news. Plus I've got a friend at Providence who deals with E.V.O.s so what kind of stuff about nanites is there that I didn't already know."

"Ah, you already are fully aware." said Mandark sarcastically, "So then I surmise you already know about the biochemical, true?"

Well, that caught Ben by surprise. Biochemical? There was no mention of a biochemical when Providence made their announcement to the world that enhancing microscopic machines were present in each living being on the planet (and were basically a ticking evolutionary time-bomb). Was this what was triggering those things?

"No they were not Ben. What I am referring to was an unprecedented bi-product. At some point in the war, and you can tell Dexter or (preferably) me about it in the past," Mandark continued, "my company found a biochemical generated from the body's bloodstream, and we theorized it was because of nanite interference. They were already enhancing the body, stalling the growth of cancer cells, replenishing the blood, strengthening the nervous system, but evidently it was doing something else. It was interacting with white-blood cells, and mutating them in a way where they could utilize the DNA in the human, and give them enhanced or even metahuman abilities."

"And because the nanites are machines..." Ben began to understand, "that are producing this stuff all the time-"

"They could be programmed," Mandark concluded, "in the same way Dexter was able to code the nanites for the NanoCom's personal interface." Mandark said, referencing the virtual statistics and gadgets that could be seen at the corner of one's eye. "So we could take some DNA samples, usually from metahumans such as the...late Powerpuff Girls, and essentially give downgraded and temporary superpowers. It certainly provided some edge to the war, but not as much as the nanos were able to provide, because the imagination energy from their composition supercharged the rate of reactions regarding the white-blood cells, and giving anybody true metahuman powers."

Well...that was a lot to take in. Ben himself was no less overwhelmed, widening and rubbing his eyes as he took a step back.

"How didn't Providence see this stuff first?"

"Because the agents of Providence are neophytes." Mandark said. "Even if they were first to discovery, I wouldn't trust them to understand the intricacies of this science."

"Right, and you're the dude whose love for chibi art nearly ruined the only reliable defense in the war."

Mandark quickly closed his eyes in shame, gave a long sigh in humility, and immediately returned to the subject. "The biochemical is of an unidentifiable composition, but three different isomers have been identified and have been confirmed to exist exclusively."

"'Exclusively'? What do you-"

"It varies with each person, and we at Mandark Industries found a pattern pertaining to which isomer belongs where," said Mandark. He then pulled up a wide range of scientific evidence on the holographic screen, including video footage, bar charts "Type 1 was referred to as "Adaptium", it is the weakest of them, but grants increased reflexes, agility, processing speed, and stamina. It also showed signs of increased tolerance and adaptability in different environments. People such as myself and Dexter have this isomer of the biochemical."

"Type 2 was called "Blastons", the strongest of the lot." he explained. "The chief traits among these include strength, enhanced durability and resistance to foreign environments, such as fusion matter." Mandark then looked at the monitor, showing a confused expression. "and...there's Type 3, the strongest."

"What?" Ben asked, "No...you said that the Blast-er one was the strongest, what's different here?"

"Right, allow me to rephrase: this is not the strongest, as it has its flaws but when measuring its extents, this type isn't just strong, but in layman's terms, it...just - fills the user with a massive surge of energy. With the other isomers, we see a general increase in adrenaline or neurone activity, but with this one, we found not only those two points of interest in play, but we also found that when applied to a meta-gene, such as the ones in your aliens, the conversion of energy that manifests as the superpower increased exponentially; the rate of energy transferral seemed to be rivaling the energy of thermal radiation found in deep space. Appropriately, we call this one:" Mandark pulled up a new set of statistics, yellow in color, with much more violent video footage; the stats on the bar charts were through the roof. ""Cosmix"."

"That's a bad name."

"This name was not our idea. The Kids Next Door came up with it."

"But seriously, what evidence do you have to suggest that this stuff hurts fusions _more so_ than the other two isomers?"

"How do you think you were able to kill the Cyberus with one blow back in Tech Square?" Mandark asked, making Ben recall that peculiar event. He just thought that he was really angry. "Earlier footage shows most of our 'adaptium'-based metahumans were unable to deal as much damage as that, even the pyrokinetic ones."

"So you test them."

"Affirmative."

"All of them?"

"Affirmative."

"You even tested me when I wasn't looking."

"Affirmative."

"So...wait," Ben stopped Mandark before he could say anymore, "assuming that you had to run tests to weaponize the isomer, or maybe you just sent out an app through the nanites, how was I just suddenly able to use my Cosmix-thing without any of the right tests used?"

Before Mandark could respond, the two heard footsteps, very fast footsteps, it was coming from outside the offsite lab. The next thing before them was a panting, anxious, and frantic KND operative.

"S-something's wrong with Number Two!"

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 24 - 2014** **-** **SECTOR V TREEHOUSE**

The alarm rang in Number Five's room. It said 7:00 am. She tapped it. It stopped. Usually, it wasn't like her to wake up to the alarm, it would be a long time and a cold day in hell before she could grow up to be like that. No, what made her "wake up" to the alarm was the fact that she was kept up all night by what she could have only described as mechanical insanity.

Ever since yesterday, Number Two had been working non-stop on the communications system. Something suspicious had happened to the communications hub that 274 had assigned to Two, and it looked bad to the point where all the members of Sector V had to call their parents and ask for a sleepover, as they all had to see this through. One had a massive fit reacting to this, and Two had been killing himself accordingly trying to fix whatever bug was crawling everywhere.

She slowly made her way down the one-oak plank spiral staircase, and down to the control center, where Number Four reluctantly kept watching him at work (his bunny slippers still on), and Number One and Number Three had slept off from monitoring Two, who was still tinkering and troubleshooting. But boy-oh-boy did Hoagie look better on other days. His iconic aviator cap was flat on the floor, with signs of stomping. He looked sweaty, and his hair was all over the place, both in terms of cleanliness and _literally_. It wasn't a sight for sore eyes for sure.

"How long he been like this?" Five asked Four, slurring in her speech.

"I don' think I remember." Four asked with a less vibrant or cocky attitude than usual. "Whaddy'a think caused it?"

"Numbuh Five don't wanna know. Numbuh Five don't wanna care. Numbuh Five wanna know 'n care where the breakfast donuts are."

"Oh, right. Numbuh Three said she'd get some, but..." Four pointed to the indisposed members of Sector V, completely out cold. "y'know..."

That was the last straw for Five. She just. Could. _Not._ _Take it_. **Any**. **More**. "GODDAMMIT NUMBUH TWO!" She yelled.

"Not now Number Five, please! I'm-"

"You been workin' for the entire goddamn night! And it's drivin' me bats-hit crazy!"

"It's drivin' everyone bats-hit crazy, mate!" Four added.

"It's not my fault, okay?! This dang thing seems to have it out for me! It's almost like this new computer is really trying to _byte_ me!" Two joked irritatedly, while still biting his nails. He ignored whatever went wrong with making that pun, but to the rest of the KND this looked more serious than ever.

"Oh man, poor bloke's so tired, he can' even make a good pun!"

"None o' that fool's puns are good." Five muttered under her breath. "Two, I gotta tell 274 'bout this!"

"NO WAY! If Chad catches wind of this crap, or anyone else, they could lock me up! Or decommission me, and...I..." Two hesitated with fear, before letting it all out. "I don' _wanna_ be put on trial for a crime I didn't commit!"

"Calling Chad's personal carrier." Five shouted across the room. But not to her surprise, she couldn't open a transmission channel. "Ah crud, comms are still down!"

"I'M STILL WORKING ON IT!" Two shouted yet again in frustration. "BUT PLEASE DON'T DO ANYTHING! I'LL GIVE UP MY SUPERHERO COMICS! MY SHNEBAY ACCOUNT! ANYTHING BUT-" Before Two could say anymore, Four slapped some good ol' duct tape on his pie-hole.

Five took a deep breath, finally able to think straight. "All right, I'm tryin' a morse code frequency." She said.

"You know morse code?" Four asked, apparently not knowing that ever. Yeesh.

"Hell yeah Numbuh Five knows morse code." Five retorted back. "Sweet, we got contact."

* * *

**LOCATION UNKNOWN**

"Number 362!" An operative shouted on the silent (and dark) floor of the Moon Base. "We have contact!"

"For real?!" the Moon Base commander exclaimed in relief. "It's really about time! Who's it from?"

"Number Two, he needs to send this transm-I mean...letter to 274."

"What do you mean letter? It's not a transmission?"

"No, it's morse code, it came from the morse code club downstairs. Our real comms are still down, ma'am."

Seems that relief came too soon. 362 sat back down in defeat. She was hoping that their problem with the comms would end here, but apparently whoever was managing the comms was too stupid or too brain dead. Why couldn't they have given that job to Number Two? She was the best tech-head she knew.

"Patch it through the morse code club again. They can transmit whatever Number Two needs."

* * *

**LOCATION UNKNOWN**

And the letter in morse code came to the hands of one Chad Dickinson, AKA Supreme Commander Number 274.

"Translate that for me." He playfully told his computer before giving the actual command prompt. "Analyze dots and stuff, translate message."

And when the message showed itself...

"Wait, what?"

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 24 - 2014** **-** **SECTOR V TREEHOUSE**

"There! Now you don't have to worry." Five said as she marched toward a cowering and shivering Hoagie. "We've informed high command about the situation. And knowing Numbuh 274, he's a cool dude, so what could possibly go wrong?"

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015 -** **SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE**

Tears seeped into the oakwood floor as fast as people reacted to an unconscious and spasming Number Two. Aside from the fact that he looked terrible, he was profusely sweating, and he was blinking rapidly (they took his goggles off), his arms, neck, and face were covered in green pulsing veins. He looked like something straight out of a nightmare.

Somehow, the rest of the nightmare had followed him into reality.

Ben and Mandark followed the kid into the ER, or the closest thing Sector V had to an ER. It was barely keeping him stable. The genius waited by the door, while Ben slowly made his way

"Get me the insulin, NOW!" screamed Number 142, who was keeping her hands on Two to restrain him. But it was still no use, the legendary KND operative was reduced to a thrashing mess, and he continued to do so. Ben could only blink as rapidly as Two trying to process everything happening.

He then looked around to find others' reactions. Number 10 was pacing back and forth, 60 was pulling his hair out; 39 was lying in a hospital bed herself, along with numbers 28, 47 and 64. That explained why everything was much more frenzied than it would normally be. Another operative, on the other hand, was backed into a corner, trying to keep a state of peace, but it was failing miserably. She was trembling, shaking, and crying silently.

Mandark paced towards the death-bed, first taking Two's hand to check his pulse. Ben went to 142, who was basically pulling her hairs out at the moment.

"You," the alien hero said, addressing the KND medic, "what the hell happened?!"

"WE DON'T KNOW!" 142 exclaimed, much louder than before. "He just collapsed in the middle of Hero's Square a few minutes ago, and he started spasming seconds after!"

"We found the origin of infection on his left forearm." An assisting KND medic said. "From the look of it, he's had this thing since Tech Square, or maybe longer, we don't know." From that, Ben came to realize where this had come from. It was his stand against Fusion Buttercup, when it had tackled and grabbed him, it must have done something to him, something to infect him and make him as miserable as he was.

"So he has survived this long?" Mandark noted, "Impressive." He further examined Two's dying body, checking other points that could provide some idea of what was happening to him.

"Okay, okay, tell me what do you know?" Ben asked.

"The only thing we know is that it's fusion matter poisoning!" 142 said, shocking Ben to the point of being speechless. "We know how to deal with the forms of poisoning usually shown, but we...we just-we haven't seen these symptoms before!" she yelled.

Mandark quickly got up, and calmly said: "I have." He then took a syringe from the tray next to the makeshift monitor.

"Fusion matter infection can work like organophosphate poisoning, specifically similar to the Sarin or VX biological weapons. It can target both the muscular system and the nervous system, and blocks out enzymes necessary for maintaining muscular stability and inhibits the cholinergic receptors of the brain's neurotransmitters." Mandark explained to 142, as he was holding Two down while readying the syringe. 142 was barely catching on herself.

"I thought fusion matter was a nano polymer...thing that could regenerate!" Ben exclaimed, breaking his silence, "When the hell did it become a freakin' poison?!"

"Shut up, Ben!" yelled Mandark, and then he turned to 142, "This is standard medical procedure, and we scientists all know about it, as well as what it is that we are doing, unlike you." Mandark bluntly stated. "Besides, there are other treatments for these symptoms, they're called atropine and pralidoxime. If we don't get these antidotes to him immediately, the fusion matter in his system will bind faster."

A KND agent quickly ran to another room in response to that. 142 walked towards Mandark, consulting the genius with a great deal of faith.

"How do you know it'll work?" she asked.

"It might not, but it can reduce the effect on Two. Hopefully enough to-" Mandark halted and his head jolted to look at his hand, or how Two's chest was visibly slowing down. Most people looked in shock and silence, did this mean he was going to be okay?

Mandark had a second opinion, as his expression worsened. "Oppenheimer's ghost, his convulsions are slowing down!" He turned frantically to 142, "You said he's been like this for 6 minutes?"

"Y-Yeah? Wait, I d-didn't even say anything ye-"

"Then we have 4 to treat him or prepare for the worst!" Mandark said, now shouting close to 142's ears, "Get me atropine and pralidoxime, and include imagination energy as a reactant, NOW!"

"I got it!" that KND agent screamed from the other room. He quickly ran back to the wing, struggling to carry the two large jugs of atropine and pralidoxime, as well as a small vial of glowing imagination energy. Once he made it, Mandark quickly took the supplies and poured them into their respective bags (with an insertion of imagination energy). He then took the IV connected to Two and reconnected it to the atropine bag, and immediately a second tube was applied to Two for the pralidoxime.

The liquids began to flow through the tubules into Number Two's bloodstream, where they would be absorbed and distributed by his body. A moment of silence succeeded the rambling KND agents praying for Number Two, as a ray of hope emerged where they least expected it: Mandark.

But something was wrong, his vitals weren't leveling off, they were the same! They were the alarming, failing, on-the-verge-of-death, SAME!

"YOU SAID THE IMAGINATION ENERGY WOULD DEUS EX-MACHINA THIS CRAP!"

"I know what I proclaimed! But the fusion matter infection is preventing the atropine and pralidoxime from creating any activation energy, it's fighting the reaction back! As a result the solution's not entering his system fast enough!" said Mandark. He words were like pavement to the face, to everyone's face actually. All the KND agents began to retreat, in both fear and shock.

Ben took a big step back and thought of how he could possibly help. He searched his mind vigorously, trying to remember what could possibly speed up a reaction. But it was much harder than he thought, Chemistry had never been a strong point for him, or was that Physics? He couldn't waste time remembering that, but he was able to remember an analogy Gwen had taught him once: if you run faster, more energy is exerted to get to the finish line. So perhaps to speed up the reaction, more energy had to be transferred by say...heat. But what alien did he have in the Omnitrix that could siphon and control heat? Heatblast was one option, but with Heatblast there's barely any control in heat levels. Did he have anything that could properly control heat?

Well...he had... _one_.

"Oh, dude, I got just the thing!" Ben exclaimed, as he slammed his watch, and green light enveloped the room once again. Bystanding KND agents marveled at Ben as he began to encase himself in thick, metallic armor with small fiery slits on what was supposed to be either a helmet or a face. A green hourglass-like symbol was on the center of its chest, glowing brilliantly. This new mechanical being made its way over to Number Two, with the KND agents still marveling at this form.

Mandark looked up to see Ben's new alien, evidently shocked by its 8-foot stature.

"Everybody, stand back, I'm going to send a concentrated heat wave to speed up the reaction." Ben claimed, extending his alien form's arms.

"You can do that?"

"This one can. I mean, they don't call it NRG for nothin'." Ben declared; he began to radiate heat in his palms.

"Wait, Ben," Mandark exclaimed, "if you heat up his body to try to speed up the reaction, it could fry him!"

"What if we maintained some kind of middle-ground like an equilibrium of temperatures?"

All eyes were now on Mandark, who politely admitted "it could work..."

"Well then," said Ben, "we're gonna need a coolant, or something that can keep him from burning up."

"We have a freeze ray!" 142 offered, showing him a F.R.A.P.P.E, to which Mandark quickly denied with a shaking head. He tried thinking hard as Ben began to heat up Two; the temperature was slowly rising. Ben couldn't move his head, but he was staring at Mandark, expecting him to think of something. At that moment, he thought of something, something that was a real long-shot.

"We have thermophiles!"

"Right! A–a what?!"

Mandark almost immediately pulled out his NanoCom, and was furiously scrolling through his inventory, until he stopped scrolling and clicked one area of the touch-screen. The moment he touched that item, a blue light began to emit from the tiny camera lens, forming a grid pattern that quickly formed a shape. Then, like out of nowhere, a vial of nowhere, a syringe with a clear substance appeared. Was that water?

Mandark held out the syringe in a demonstrative manner. "This is water, Ben, but it contains a microscopic bacterium called a hyperthermophile. Well, actually I mutated it a bit, but that shouldn't-"

"Less talking, more doing!" the alien hero interrupted, to which Mandark heeded as he injected the needle into the bloodstream, and the heat-absorbing bacteria did its work like magic. The green pulsing veins covering Two's body from head-to-toe began to dissolve away. But in place of it, his skin began to take a green tint. The obvious change in skin color frightened the others, specifically Ben.

"Why's his skin turning green?" asked 142, the worry in her voice prevalent.

"Yeah, M-Mandark, is that a bad thing?"

"It...hold on..." Mandark looked like he was observing Two as if he was a painting. He then began touching his hand to check something else.

"Negative, his condition is stabilizing." Mandark exclaimed, sounding surprised himself. "His skin's turning green because the atropine and pralidoxime have singled out the fusion matter particles, causing them to diffuse from his body to the surface of his skin. The imagination energy has temporarily nullified it, and the mutated hyperthermophile has begun to regulate Two's internal body temperatures."

"And now, we just have to take it out!" Ben realized, as he then tried to tap his symbol, but his thick arm-armor was making it hard to do so. He tried once, then twice, then thrice at which people deadpanned at him.

He then fully extended his arm, and _then_ moved inwards, and finally was he able to change...finally. The grey armor became red, his size shifted down to 7 feet, and the structure became a lot more mechanical. This alien wore a half-helmet covering the back of its head, resembling a hood, and had a bug-eyed automaton face. Having finished transforming into "Water Hazard", Ben made no hesitation to extend his arms; he began controlling the water like a puppet, closely managing to extract the fusion matter. The water came out of the alien's fingertips, and carried over to Number Two's much healthier body resembling a bunch of wires.

These 'water wires' descended upon the concentrated fusion matter, and the water began to diffuse and absorb the fusion matter. Then, as if conducting an orchestra, Ben raised his fingers and extracted the fusion matter through the 'water wires', seemingly leaving Two's system.

But the fusion matter continued to go up the water stream, slowly approaching Ben.

"Uh...guys? A-anyone mind...y'know?" he asked, the slight panic in his voice was growing slowly. "G-get this stuff away from me?"

"Right, um," 142 said hesitantly, "how do we do that?"

The fusion matter began to get dramatically close to Ben, at which he began to panic.

Just then, a loud sound came from the left; it sounded like a balloon tie being pinched and the air being let out, only much louder. Everyone looked to their left, to see a tired, slouching and very much relaxed KND agent holding a mini-vacuum cleaner...

...sucking the fusion matter away into the machine.

He let out a yawn in his callowness, while everyone stood dumbfounded by numerous things to long to list.

"Operative, be careful", Mandark calmly warned, "that vacuum just sucked in a highly interactive and contaminating subject. Please dispose of it with extreme care!"

The operative looked back at the vacuum. Then at Mandark. Then at the vacuum. Then at the open window. Then back to Mandark. With a careless and fatigued speech, he calmly said. "Okay."

He then, without looking back at the opening, threw the vacuum out of it. A small whistle was heard as it descended, and a faint grunt from all the way down echoed all the way up, and everyone flinched. Except the half-awake operative.

"So that happened..." a random operative stated. Somehow from there, the tight knot of tension loosened, and everyone could breathe again. Including and especially Number Two. 142 went over to the back end of the death-bed, and with another operative lifted the plank (with great pain and struggle) and carried the recovering patient out of the room.

Despite that everyone was relieved from the stress and worries of just a few moments ago, a long silence possessed the room. No one knew what to say, they just went right back to work. But the look on each one of their faces screamed the meaning of 'trauma'.

Ben tried his best to shrug that face off too, but much like the rest he wasn't able to. He went over to a exhausted Mandark.

"We _really_ need to discuss a group of little kids and teenagers having access to antidotes for nerve toxins." Ben joked nonchalantly.

"No, we do not."

"Yes. We do." Ben reiterated.

"No, we do not. But more importantly, Ben," continued Mandark, "I would like to elaborate on what I had said earlier: fusion matter...as a poison, is completely unpredictable. It can display different symptoms and different types of toxicity, because Fuse controls it that way. None of this is chance, none of this is fate. If we knew about fate, maybe we could have saved him sooner."

Mandark returned to his lab at that moment, leaving Ben to stare out the window of the Treehouse. To his eventual horror, it dawned on him that Number Two was the leading mechanic alongside Mandark. Without Dexter, it was their responsibility to rebuild the time machine. But now, whatever hope he had in returning to his time safely had just jumped out of the window.

* * *

"Arriving now, ladies and gents," shouted the Sky Monkey, making sure that his passengers could hear him, "at Goat's Junkyard...where it was s'posed to end."

Mandy ignored that last comment, as did Number Five and their new companion, because at that point it meant nothing. She, Otto and Five detached themselves from the monkeys and got themselves armed, herself with a S.H.A.V.E.R.A.M.A, while Five was equipped with her duel pop guns. The PROVIDENCE agents were a little farther behind on their own two-man shuttle. Otto had no protection on him at all, remaining in the attire he met the two girls at. The entrance changed the last time Mandy's saw it, the nameless man's trailer was gone, completely, and there was more fusion matter vines beneath the ground.

Mandy looked over at that empty space, once filled by a man's home, and possibly the man himself, with nothing but a blank stare.

But over the distance stood a once-towering mecha, which fought to its last stand, but now leaning to one side in defeat. A terrafuser was plugged to its chest like a giant battery, sucking the life out of the robotic giant.

Mandy looked onto that fallen guardian, once programmed with protection and prosperity, with nothing but a blank stare.

She was tired of this. Of all of this. There wasn't a moment in her life that she would have thought that the _Null Void_ would be a nice place to take a vacation. There was barely any sound, the place was well-protected, and best of all, the spawn activity there was as low as Billy's IQ test. But as soon as that plague of ideas could come to mind, the mind made quick disposal of such filth. The spawn level was exponentially rising, the Void's outposts were long abandoned because of that, and worst of all, there WAS sound (rocks hitting each other and some incessant screaming coming from a red glowing orb). It didn't matter to Mandy that her entire world was ending, it only mattered that her last remaining escape plan was foiled.

"Yo! You done sight-seein' or what?" Five shouted. She had already made her way to the brilliantly-glowing warpgate. But her shout didn't deter Mandy from the image in front of her. The nihilistic, pessimistic girl walked into the gate, her eyes still transfixed on the empty space. With a reactor sound, the switch of a lever and a blinding flash of white and blue lights, she was suddenly in the most infected area on the planet.

The Junkyard looked like it went on for miles, with the robot in the distance and towering over the area. They were teleported to the regular starting point: a straight pathway with infected grass hills on one side, and smelting factories on the other. It extended almost endlessly, down the grounds and even into the sky as discarded pieces of metal were floating around and getting closer to the sky.

Mandy stared at the world around her, the floating metal, the fallen titan, the missing man, the seas of fusion matter ahead of them, and the large puddles directly in front of them.

With a blank stare.

"Hey!" Five shouted, yet again to get Mandy's attention. "You still got those cannons?"

"What do you think, genius?" responded Mandy, "I've been stockpiling on these since the episode with the four kids down the lane."

"It was five." Five said. "Look, Otto, just lead us to wherever the fusions took that thing."

"Rightrightright!" Otto repeated. He ran towards one of the floating platforms, jumped up on them, and continued so to reach the top of the smelting factory. Five followed suit, with Mandy unenthusiastically walking towards the factory's nearest door.

They remained discreet throughout their journey in the infected wasteland, carefully tip-toeing to avoid any unwanted attention from the fusion monsters.

* * *

It had already been an hour in their mission, and they had never been this tense on a mission before, even if it was for some worthless robot head. Five and Mandy held their respective guns close, ready to fire anything in the line of sight. Anything. Otto on the other hand, was walking in front of them, carefully leading the way to where he last left this robot head.

Otto peaked his head over the scrapmetal to see an area with more scattered tires and trash-bags than the rest of the infected zone. This is it, he thought, this is where he left him.

"Is that it?" Five asked, crouching down to meet Otto.

"Yeah," he confirmed, "but it looks like those fusion creeps found it before us." He pointed to the distant fusion spawns hopping around that spot.

"This better be worth it...wait. How d'you know it could still be there?" She asked. "What if the fusions already took it?"

"That's...likely. Okay, we'll keep a close eye on them then...maybe raid their inventories or something..."

Five turned back to face Mandy, who was readying her S.H.A.V.E.R.A.M.A to fire. She looked questioningly at Mandy, not understanding what it was she was up to.

"I shoot better from this distance." Mandy said, nonchalantly. "Also, I made some upgrades to the grapple wire, this thing can fly up to 234 ft now. So back off."

That comeback made no sense to Five, so she turned back to face the fusion camp. Otto got closer to Five to tell her something, affecting Mandy's line of firing for the gun. "Watch out." Mandy warned nonchalantly to the unsuspecting boy. Luckily for Otto, Mandy would normally wait for someone like him to get out of her view-

**_BZZZBBZBZZGSSSZZZSSSS_ **

Wait, what?! She shot him? She actually shot and shaved him with the S.H.A.V.E.R.A.M.A?! _Why_?! What kind of psychopathic person would do that to another human?! She had seen him in view, why would she still fire the damn gun?! THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!

Obviously Otto was in complete shock and disarray. Though Five bolted back from the surprise, giving Mandy an unimpressed look. Otto kept feeling his new bald spot like it was some kind of radioactive substance. Apparently for him, however, touching a radioactive substance meant clawing it over and over with one's bare nails. He kept doing that to his scalp, in something of shock in response to his new haircut.

"M-My hair!" the kid screamed, " _My hair!_ " Otto shouted at the top of his lungs, still touching the bald spot that was once his hair. "Dear fleeperzork! What did you do to my hair?!"

"Whoops." Mandy said. Friggin' psychopath...

"OK, OK, just...calm down." Five said softly, not wanting to attract any unwanted attention. "We're sorry 'bout your hair, really. But you shout any louder than that and we're gonna be found, got it?!"

"Why my hair?! Why _my_ hair?!" Otto repeated, with enough reason behind his devastation.

" _We said we're sorry 'bout the hair, dammit!_ " Five repeated. "Now get a hold of yourself, 'cause I'll say it again. Any louder than that and we're gonna be found!"

"And?!" Otto retorted. Compared to the fast-talking enthusiast they had met, this side of Otto was much more aggressive. It almost seemed impossible for him to show anger based on his looks alone. Until now, apparently, "the world is ending, everyone's dead, and my best friend's probably evil now because a bit of silly-putty got sprayed on him! So explain how I don't get to be angry when I've got that to think about and then everyone's resident goth girl shaves my fleepin' hair!"

"Kid, you need your priorities the other way 'round!" Five shouted to the aggressive Otto. "You think you've got the right to just have mood swings and nearly get us _killed_?! Nuh-uh. Numbuh Five had to lose more than friends within the last year! Numbuh Five had to lose family, both the one Numbuh Five grew up with and the ones Numbuh Five shared a roof with! Both sets of people are _dead_! _Gone_! Cree, Nigel, Wally, Kuki, Mom 'n Dad! Numbuh Five grieved _so_ much, she don't have to shed a damn tear any-damn-more, and she feels that for all this crap, _I_ couldn't call myself Numbuh Five anymore, 'cause I don't have that RIGHT anymore!" She wasn't exaggerating about that. Five kept a straight face for the whole lecture. Otto was little over terrified now, it nearly escaped his mind that fusions were the ones who would actually tear him apart. "So you _really_ need to chill, kiddo, cause I'll be damned before I let you get us killed today."

Mandy stared at Otto without distraction. "What're you playing at?" she asked. The boy braked on his frantic breathing as if there was a pedal for it, and his shoulders became much more relaxed overall. Five had to hand it to Mandy, she knew how to spot the subtle things:

Otto was hiding something.

"Huh?" Otto asked, trying to play it off.

"Your friend is a robot. _It's a robot_." Mandy began, "Before the war you could _buy them on a store shelf_. And I'm sure we can build you a new one with the right parts, probably from here alone. So explain how out of all the robots we could make and program, this one's some kind of Holy Grail."

"That thing just has-"

"Has what? Explain!" Mandy demanded, pointing the S.H.A.V.E.R.A.M.A without much aim, rather just showing him and expecting him to be threatened. "And while you're at it, tell us what the hell 'fleeping' means."

Oh no, Otto didn't realize that it was the hundred million-first century swear-word that would blow his cover. Maybe he should've listened to Tuddrussel about that stuff.

"Answers!" Mandy threatened, aiming the gun at his face, "Or I'm goin' for the sideburns!"

"Alrightalright! I...it's a long story..."

"We'll wait." Mandy said, coarsely.

Otto tried to think. "I'm a member of the Time Squad."

"Never heard of 'em."

"That's the point. No one's is supposed to hear about them. In short, the Time Squad exists outside the regular timestream, and because said timestream is unstable, we have to constantly repair the past and keep the future the way its supposed to be."

The two girls remained silent, looking at him without much movement. Behind them, the future continued around them. A KND operative was running away from some fusion monsters, terrafusers were glowing bright as the platforms around them were becoming more distorted due to the gravitational anomalies. The future continued to move on and on and on. So of course, Five and Mandy were thinking the exact same thing.

The Time Squad was pretty friggin' horrible at doing its job.

They also both thought that Otto was probably looking for something Time-Squad related, so they decided to humor the kid. "Like the Plumbers?" Five asked.

"Y-yeah, like the Plumbers." Otto responded. They were taking this surprisingly well, but he could speculate that this was just another day in the years of crazy stuff happening.

"But you're from the future."

"Yeah-well, not me...I'm from this time period..."

"Oh, so you're from the past! As in the same time period as Ben 10?" Five realized and asked Otto.

"Y-yeah?"

To that, Mandy face-palmed and turned away slowly, muttering but still aiming her gun at Otto.

"Why's that such a big deal?"

"I dunno, maybe you could fly away in your little phone box or oversized hair-salon chair _yourself_ , and maybe warn our friends _before_ the invasion, and maybe _none of this right now would be happening at all_!"

" _I don't have the time machine **on** me, but something that could help is in this junkyard_!" Otto tried to voice. "And besides, a major factor to you losing was the absence of Ben for the majority of the war, along with a few others, so sending _him_ back is _still_ _your best_ _bet_!"

"So maybe now you can tell us what it is you lost here?" Mandy asked, still with a sour tone in her voice. "You know, instead of doing the stupid thing where you still keep it a secret like some self-conscious _prick_."

"How should we know to trust you now?" Five asked.

"Whaddy'a mean?"

Mandy followed up on what Five had to say. "I mean, for all we care, you could've been hiding some time-travelling tech that would've made _everything_ going on right now a _whole lot_ easier. Maybe we don't even need your stupid robot head!"

"What?! How?! Why?! I just told you everything about myself and the fleeping Time Squad! How _can't_ you trust me?!"

"Well for one, I'm not the one who looks like Lex Luthor."

"YOU DID THAT, YOU INSUFFERABLE-"

Otto would have finished his sentence, if it wasn't for the fusion monsters that towered over them to charge. They were wrecked pieces of cars with circular saw blades for hands. Its stature resembled that of a T-rex, with green headlights glowing and a split bumper that was separating like a mouth. So much like a mouth, it began to roar.

To break the moment of shock and terror, Mandy had to speak up. "Oh joy."

"Junkasaurus! Junkasaurus!" Five shouted in fear, as she imediately aimed her pistols at the fusion monster. But she missed half the time. She found herself regretting losing the contacts, but it wasn't like there would be a difference, as most of her blasts were like an annoying fly to the hulking, mechanical beast. Mandy made haste and fired the S.H.A.V.E.R.A.M.A at the monster's metal skin, which obviously didn't work. At that point, she pulled out her NanoCom and tried to summon the cannons, but another Junkasaurus knocked her off her feet, sending her flying to a fusion-matter infected wall. Five fared no better either. At this point she was running from the monster, leaving a shaking and crouching Otto behind.

Unfortunately for her, she didn't consider that this was a junkyard, and that the next thing that could happen is tripping and falling. The Junkasaurus leaned in on her as she attempted to escape, but it held on of her hands down, making it impossible to move. The fusion monster then extended its own arm, which had a motorized circular sawblade on it. The sawblade began spinning, and getting dangerously close to Five's armor.

But all of a sudden, it halted, and Five didn't know why. The Junkasaurus got up and deactivated its blade, to reveal a figure that looked exactly like Eddy. Everything from the shirt pattern to the mismatched cargo pants. But this one was shaking insanely, the shirt's colors were inverted, and his skin was _green_.

There stood Fusion Eddy. Its hands behind its back, having combed Eddy's hair over, and commanding the pack of scrapmetal dinosaurs like dogs on a leash. What Five noticed immediately was that this doppleganger was carrying a cardboard box, and based on its posture, the box looked relatively heavy.

Mandy woke up to the fusion scumbag standing victorious. It commanded the Junkasaurus to take Number Five by the legs, dragging her to wherever he kept prisoners. The other one was on patrol, watching the area very closely. She made extremely slow movements while the fusions were scheming in their own language, reaching for her NanoCom. Opening the inventory, she clicked the icon that she immediately recognized.

As the cannon began materializing out of thin air, the Junkasaurus took notice. It gave a loud growl, and paced towards the girl as she equipped herself with the cannon. Mandy took the weapon and fired it directly towards the monster. As if a house of cards, the monster fell apart upon impact with the projectile. The other Junkasaurus that was tackling Five charged at her in response, only for Mandy to quickly send a cannon to Five's NanoCom. The operative made no haste in taking out the cannon and destroying the monster. Fusion Eddy turned around and growled, only to face a standing (but weak) Mandy, aiming her cannon at its face.

"Next time, you mind turning your skin pink for our pleasure?" Mandy sarcastically asked as she fired the rocket into the doppleganger, sending it flying away. It dropped the box it was carrying, spilling several items onto the ground. There was gum, wood, food, and jawbreakers among other things. Five figured these were the missing supplies for Peach Creek. But one item stood out from the rest. It was metallic and cylindrical, a mouth formed from an extruding exhaust port, with cracked optic sensors and clear signs of the head being ripped off from a body. It was beaten and rusty, but attracted Otto as if it was a piece of gold. He held the head up high as he opened his mouth in disbelief.

"S-so what? Is that it?" Five asked, not understanding Otto's exuberance.

"This could solve. ALL. Of your problems." Otto said pacingly, "I never thought we'd find him so quickly though, Larry has been hard to find before, but-"

Five had to blink twice for that. " _Larry_? You gave that thing a _name_?"

"No, that's just his designation, Larry 3000," said Otto, sounding more stupid than before, "but that's not the important part, this guy helped with our chronal co-ordination and navigation, and had a repository of tachyon particles stored in his head frame. It may be mankind's only chance of winning this war!"

"Uh...huh...uh...f-full disclosure, kiddo. I have no clue what 'tachyon particles' are, but Mandark probably does." Five suggested, "Besides, we don't want to get anymore monsters up in our business, no matter how much fun it might be."

"Yeah, that was something. Anyway, we got Larry's Head." said Otto, a little exhausted himself. "So we ought'a leave now, and get him to Mandark, as you said."

"Wouldn't be too bad…" Mandy said, weakly, "I could really...relax for a moment..."

"Mandy, y'alright?" Five asked with concern.

"Yeah, I thin...I...whattheffu..." She collapsed onto the ground as Five tried to catch her fall. The highly trained operative failed, and the fall was hard. Five held Mandy by the arms, and immediately noticed a dark green wound on her back that was gushing blood and glowing with fusion matter. Veins turned green and quickly spread to her arms and legs.

Mandy was dying.

Dying from a fusion matter infection.

"The one time we needed Grim," she complained, "he was probably drinking from a coconut by the River _Lethe_."

"You know that ain't true," Five said, "you also know that even though that bag o' bones ain't here, you can still get through with this."

"If he isn't here...then why do I see him over your shoulder?" That alone sent a shiver down Five's spine. Mandy coughed more, as the green veins were half-way up her neck, getting dangerously close to her brain.

"Yeah, h-he's showin' my hourglass, it looks...really convoluted but, i-it's run...out..."

Mandy failed to finish as the veins covered her face. The fusion matter reached her brain, and shut it down within seconds. Five took a moment to realize the life had left Mandy's eyes. It seemed peaceful enough to have her not freak out over anything, and luckily unlike Finn it wasn't horrific enough to thoroughly mourn her. Five stood up, her head down in shame, without saying a word, and let Mandy rest in peace under the shade of the giant robot...trapped in one position...unable to escape fate.

But she continued to think more about what she said. 'The one time we needed Grim.' The Grim Reaper was nowhere to be seen when the fusions began to invade. It made her wonder as she walked quietly away from Mandy's corpse with Otto, what would the war have been like if Grim was around? Or maybe more importantly...

Where was Grim when everyone she knew began dropping dead like flies?

She couldn't bother herself to answer or think too much about that question. She turned around to face Otto, now stood up and ready to go, and so was she. Five kept her dual pistols at her side, because escaping the infected zone would be harder than entering it. "Another mission...complete..." Five said with fatigue. She was truly finding her limits with this war. She just wanted it to be over.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 24 - 2014 - LOCATION UNKNOWN**

"INSUBORDINATION!"

"SABOTAGE!"

"REASON #3!"

All the members of the KND in the courtroom were clamoring into the center of the hall, while Number Two was slowly sinking into the chair of shame. He still had no idea what he had done wrong. He was just doing his daily frequency-synchs with the other bases, he didn't expect to be threatened with decommissioning. It was even worse when he heard Number Five's voice just ringing in his head. What was it she said? _"What could possibly go wrong?"_ He didn't even need his 2x4 goggles to analyze how many ways _everything_ went wrong. Way 1: someone who managed to graduate out of cadets next door and get a great position in the organization, actually mistook a maintenance error for a deliberate sabotaging of KND property and was prosecuting him for it. Way 2: whatever was jamming those usually functional KND signals from all the way to _Pluto_ was clearly not a friendly.

Way 3: _Number Four was representing him_.

Yeah, he was bound to get decommissioned. Add that to the increasing worry he had about the signal jam.

Two sweat in his seat, still thinking about the communications relay back on Earth, and what in his known existence could jam their signals so effortlessly. He'd deduced that there was some kind of interference for sure, but he theorized that one interference from one area could have affected the rest of the relays. But then again. What on _EARTH_ could do that?! The last he saw Ben, he said that none of his rogues gallery was coming to Earth anytime soon, and as far as he knew there were no other villains from the far reaches of the universe that could come to mind immediately.

So what the hell was going on?!

When Two looked at the "Jury", he could see that some were also thinking that same thing.

"ORDER!" Number 1776 shouted as she slammed the turnip-gravel. "The prosecution has the floor. Number 363, your case?"

"Yeah!" 363 shouted, when he could have just lowered his voice. "Look, we've lost all communications with the Outer Rim bases. Be it through our Twitter or Instagram, or even standard KND transmission channels. Number Two was put in charge of maintaining these commlinks, right?! So obviously he failed his high command job of the _highest_ command! We oughta charge 'im with _de_ _commissioning_ , as a _start_!" That...really awful argument (what? it was _awful_ ) got a lot more respect than it deserved. Several KND operatives were cheering 363 on, more than Two had _actually_ expected. Four seemed ready to say something...god help him...

"I OBJECT!" Four shouted, acknowledging that that wasn't the right word to use, probably, "The initial charges were that my...eh...client...sabotaged these commlinks, but there is _no_ evidence from this twit so far ta suggest that Numbuh Two willingly sabotaged anything out of villainy!"

"W-well, my sister is Number 362! She's the head of the Moon Base and second-in-command to 274! She can kick you out of the KND faster than you can say...uh - sorry!"

1776 was clearly dumbfounded by how this little kid with half as much intelligence as a _rock_ got to be a KND lawyer. "Number 363, I hope you realize that we are _on_ Moon Base, under Number 362's jurisdiction," she continued, "and this fair trial is happening thanks to her permission."

363 looked like he was going to break fifty pencils if given them. Some swore they could see legitimate smoke rising from his top and coming out of his ears.

"As you can see, this little runt can't respond because of one true fact! He's a CND washout with enough family to exercise his own power!" Four immediately shouted into the auditorium, taking the opportunity to put 363 in his place. "I mean, who even vouched to let you become a KND lawyer anyway? Numbuh MORON?!"

A small voice from the back of the crowd shouted in the vastness of the hall: "No, I designed the birthday suits and the camo-tech."

"Wait, you _exist_?" a second voice spoke.

"Is _that_ why seven of our units got kidnapped by the Proper Patrol yesterday?!" another voice shouted.

"I'M YELLING ALSO!"

Next thing Four and Two knew, the whole court once again descended into chaos. Four slowly leaned to his shoulder and whispered "So...should I morse code 274 or somethin'? I know someone who's good at it."

Two swore that if this kangaroo-court crap continued, he'd either go insane or make himself pass out.

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 4 - 2015 -** **SECTOR V**

_Beat_

Five pulled out her NanoCom as she marched through Number One's now tilted house and up the tilted elevator to the tilted treehouse. Otto slowly followed her, trying to match her pace, carrying and caring for Larry 3000's severed head. He also couldn't help but marvel at the legendary Sector V treehouse, which he was standing in himself! They were both exhaling after making it out of the junkyard alive, and boy was that difficult. Their hearts were racing minutes ago, and now both were at a satisfying and steady beat. Five just wished that _everyone_ could have made it out alive. With the press of a few buttons, a holographic icon of Eddy appeared, and out came his repugnant voice.

 _"Hey, you. Did you find our stuff?"_ Eddy spoke over the NanoCom. _"I mean, it was a lotta stuff, so either you're carrying both of the crates on your back, that wuss little kid is helpin' you out, or you delibrately lost them."_

_Beat_

"The last one...in a way," Five responded, "Your fusion doppleganger took your stuff, and got its gooey hands all over it."

 _"So what,_ you didn't take it back _?!"_

_Beat_

"Like I said, it got its gooey hands on it. Nobody'd wanna eat any infected food, includin' you." Five said as she passed the makeshift medbay, where Otto left her path and joined Ben and Mandark as they were looking over the infected Number Two. Five kept walking forward, wondering how she would phrase Mandy's demise. Was it heroic? Was it in vain? It was these questions that made her want to keep a façade to–

Wait.

What?

Five stopped dead in her tracks. Her heart skipped a beat. That room that she just passed...that...couldn't have been real, right?

_Beat Beat_

No, it can't be, it's stupid talk, she thought as she slowly peddled her feet back. Her heart was skipping beats as if skipping stones, yet veins were pumping blood faster than ever, pressure formed around her wrist.

_Beat Beat Beat_

Her eyes began to get glossy, and tears began to form at her eyes, for her heart continued pounding to the beat of her thoughts, begging and pleading for what she saw to not be true. It just couldn't be!

_Beat_ _Beat Beat Beat_

But when she stared reality right in the face, the tears let loose, her body was frozen yet trembling, and she dropped her NanoCom in absolute horror.

_Beat Beat_ _Beat Beat_

_Not again_ , she thought.

 _"So? Am I gonna get new goods or what?!"_ Eddy tried to say, but his voice was only blocked by the oakwood floor. _"Five, I'm talkin' to you!"_

"Numbuh Two? Hoagie?!" Five shouted as she paced towards the gurney. She walked faster and faster, as fast as her remaining doubts fading away every step she got closer. When she was close enough to see her last remaining childhood friend on the verge of a painful and miserable death, all her possible emotions spilled out like water out of a bucket. Everything revealed itself, stress, confusion, hate, shock, grief, yet she tried her best to keep her calm...to little avail. She had repeated his name, in some hope that it was some kind of prank, just like the good ol' days. But the lack of any response cruelly proved her wrong. "NO!" She cried.

Ben looked on Number Five with different emotions of his own. Since their arrival at Hero's Square, what Five told him kept repeating in his head. _W_ _hen you see so many of your friends get taken away, you get used to it._ Now it seemed impossible for Five to have said that. She supposedly reacted calmly to the demise of Number One, yet here, it was the end of the world seeing another friend dying. But it made immediate sense as to why. This was the last remaining friend and comrade she had from childhood, from the days before the war, and now he was in a near-death state. She felt alone, the last operative of Sector V left, no one could have possibly known what it was like to be the last member remaining of a group like that.

It made him recoil at the thought of Gwen, Kevin, or even Grandpa Max like _this_. How would he have reacted?

"H-How did it happen?" Five asked with deep sorrow, tears streaming, flooding down her face while raising her head from Two's palm.

With that, all eyes had turned on Ben. "When fighting Fusion Buttercup, he got grabbed. Long enough to infect him with fusion matter." He explained with deep misery and regret. It hurt to say every word. He wished he could've done something when that fight had happened. But he didn't, and it hurt him as much as it hurt Five, but it was his failure in action.

_Beat_

Five sniffed, trying to collect herself, trying to recover and keep it upbeat. But with her façade already exposed, there was no point. She began to detach herself from Two's comatose body. As she stood up, 142 tried assuring her that so far he was in a stable condition, as Ben and Mandark had managed to extract the fusion matter before it could kill him. But she didn't want to hear it. Her dad was a doctor, and she and her sister had learned a few things about biology, that a virus isn't "eradicated" so much as it's subdued. Knowing fusion matter, she knew that whatever infected Two would come back. But 142 did say that the fusion matter was extracted...

_Beat_

She...didn't know what to think about it. She needed some...alone time.

She slowly left the medbay, her heart stopped racing, tears continuing to stream down her face; wordless, she left to try and make sense of what had happened.

_Beat_

From there on, there was silence. No one could say a word, the effects of war were never a discussed or preferred topic, but they all felt like going out and comforting Five as much as they could, but they didn't know if she wanted or needed it, regardless of however _they_ felt she needed it. Mandark, on the other hand, resumed to working on his NanoCom (what a prick), but it went unnoticed by the others.

"Nothing is ever fair...is it..." spoke Otto, having decided to step forward and break the silence.

"That remains to be seen." Mandark said, still facing the projected computer from his NanoCom, with the light of the holograms brilliantly reflecting his glasses. It took him a moment to realize whoever said that was, to his knowledge, a complete stranger...with a large bald spot. "Who are you?"

"I'm Otto, and I'm from the Time S-" Otto halted in his words, realizing that his new friends would probably demean them in ignorance, "uh...the...name's not important, we're just a group of people who make sure time is working right."

Ben could only look in disbelief at this kid's affiliation. If these guys were really important, then where were these guys for the _last year_?! Meanwhile Mandark simply scoffed at the idea, not taking much seriously from a child he'd only just met.

"Like the plumbers?" Ben asked. "Only _much worse_ at their job?"

Otto winced once again when hearing the same insult. " _Y_ _eah.._." He reluctantly agreed, as he knew he had to say something to get their full attention.

"You did not need to agree with us to get our attention, Mr. Osworth." Mandark bluntly said, reading his thoughts once again and leaving Otto completely bewildered. "But onto the more interesting subject matter. The one that...Ms. Lincoln informed us of before your arrival. Your robot's head. Care to explain?"

"This head was part of a larger robot body from the far future, and we used him to chronicle any Time Squad missions my famil-uh-partners and I had, and he could utilize tachyon particles to displace us throughout the timestream."

"You are saying this robotic helm was exposed to tachyon radiation?"

"N-no, it wasn't exposed to it. It can generate it, and Larry kept reserve pockets of this energy in his head." explained Otto, "See, because Larry was from the million-first century, he had an entire archive's worth of history databanks loaded onto his central processor. He had his AI housed within this area, which was powered by a flow of tachyons through secondary circuitry, along with a reserve pack stored right next to it. He had a panel which had these cool buttons, that could keep the tachyons in an unstable state for as long as he needed them to, and based on the timings alone, Larry could figure out where in history each event was per wait-time." Otto finished. But he knew he had to add on one potentially theory-shattering fact. "I-I mean, we _actually_ had other methods of time travel, 'cause Larry was technically a diplomatic counselor whowaslookin'forajobandhungoutwithmeandTuddrussel-"

"One word at a time!" said Ben, cutting Otto off his rant.

"Okay, he wasn't _really_ affiliated with the Time Squad, at least until he paired up with us, but we had this stuff installed in him after a few incidents in our times together..."

Mandark scoffed. He wasn't interested in this stupid backstory! Ben looked over to see Mandark tapping his foot like a camper waiting for the campfire story to get to the end.

"What I'm just saying is that he's got time-traveling doohickeys in his head, so you'll need it." Otto said as he offered the head to Mandark. The 19-year old scientist looked at the head intensely, checking other areas that could provide some advanced idea of how the head worked on its own and whether it could be useful for the construction of the time machine. Ben and Otto gave him intense stares, waiting for an answer to come out from him.

"This...this could work..."

"W-what? What could work?" Ben asked, not having a solid understanding as to what Mandark was talking about, as always.

Mandark turned around; his face in a fascinated grin that he was not known for having. "The head of this droid is said to have a vast database of events pertaining to history, and probably cross-references various events in order to "triangulate" the next position in history."

"I didn't exactly say that..." said Otto, immediately turning both of the heroes' heads. "...but i-it's true..." he admitted, probably figuring out that Mandark was smarter than him in every possible way.

"If we were to properly activate the head, harness it's tachyon energy, download it's chronal navigation, and salvage any possible equipment for a suitable apparatus, we could create a method of locking onto a specific time in history!"

"S-so..." Ben had to halt in his words in excitement. But he also remained confused. He avoided all the science in Mandark's words, and tried to grasp the logic. "we can...we can lock on to the right time period?"

"Yes, Ben. How long did it take you? A year?" Mandark sarcastically retorted. "While Number Two remains incapacitated, Mr. Osworth here can be an effective replacement. Given his affiliation with a secret time-traveling agency (amongst all other things, apparently), and his dedicated time to preserving what remains of his chronal navigator, he has an acute understanding of how the technology can be put to good use in hopes of sending you to your original time period. And as I have specified, harnessing the tachyon radiation emanating from this head will allow for precise coordination as to the areas in time we need to go. Thus, we can recreate, or perhaps create...a _superior_ rendition of _Dexter's **time machine**!_"

Did he hear that right? Well, he heard it, but he felt the need to transform into a new alien with better hearing just so he could hear it again. He couldn't believe it! They could do it now! They could build an advanced time machine that probably wouldn't blow up! Ben found it harder and harder to contain his immense excitement, until he couldn't bottle it up anymore. He kneeled down and shivered in excitement, with goosebumps crawling all over his skin, and he jumped as high as he could and laughed and shouted enough 'yeahs' to send his head flying. Even Mandark partook in the joy of the room, his ever-iconic monotone laugh joined Ben's cries of victory. Ben had one thought through all of this. He had blanked out everything else, because he had one thing in mind.

_He was goin' home_ _._

Behind the room, though, Number Five sat by the doorway, knees to her chest and sitting, continuing to let her emotions flood out while covering her hand to silence herself. She had heard everything they said. But her reaction? Everything revealed itself, stress, confusion, excitement, shock, joy...and worry. When she saw the last of her teammates dying, she had begun to detach herself from life as Number Two lay on the bed, still as a statue. But as fate would have it, there was a future yet to look forward to after all.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 25 - 2014 -** **SIYENN CITY -** **TECH SQUARE**

Dexter stared at the wall, and the wall stared back at him, mainly because of the computer screen right there in front of him.

It was midnight, and he was tired. Too tired. Earlier he had the unfortunate task of confronting one Sandra Tennyson. He of course, didn't tell her that Ben might be alive. But he found himself questioning whether it was the right thing to do. That family was already in worse shape, dealing with the loss of another family member, which had only happened last year. But on the other hand, it was his integrity on the line, as well as that of his company. He pinched his nosebridge in the empty laboratory. He wondered what he could possibly do further. His mother was already emotionally shattered as it was. How much more could be done after all the pointless work that had happened today?

And this was truly a first for Dexter, as nothing came to mind. He had to keep restating it in his mind to emphasize his failure. They had tried everything. Every possible simulation, every test.

He realized that he would need a little help, no matter how proud or arrogant he might have been to admit it. He reached for his Nanocom, which was sitting on his desk, and he pulled out the phone-dial.

He hesitated before pushing any of the touchscreen buttons. What difference would it make? Here were the scientists of Dexlabs, himself, and one of the most advanced Artificial intelligences ever produced by a human, let alone a child. But here, all of them were scratching their heads/processors, pulling out their hair/aesthetic codes, making no progress at all in retrieving Ben from the future. So how were the people he was about to call make anymore of a difference than the "differences" made by the smartest minds on Earth?!

Well...their father, or guardian, was a scientist...and an...experienced professional...so...

"What was the number of that hotline..." he pondered; it had been a while since he had to use it. If there was any physical problems he usually put something together for a way of fixing it, "ah yes. That should be it."

With that, the phone was beeping. Dexter grew impatient by simply having to hear and wait to that slow sound, until it finally picked up.

"Hello, Powerpuff Girls. I...cannot believe I am about to say this...I need some help."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEVELOPER'S JOURNAL - CHAPTER 3: Get REddy
> 
> This has to be the worst chapter I've written.
> 
> Wait, did I say chapter? No, that doesn't make sense, I don't even have a large enough array of chapters to say this is the worst. So how about...
> 
> THIS IS THE WORST THING I HAVE EVER WRITTEN.
> 
> Though, in my favor, I've been incredibly busy with tests at school. So once again, I'm very sorry for the late release. I know I promised to post it by the end of March, and here we are...at the start of flippin' JULY.
> 
> ...
> 
> This is not okay, guys. I couldn't apologize more here. Anyway...
> 
> Special thanks to AnimeGirl 144, a.k.a Kyra Xyrespace from the official FusionFall Legacy Community Team, for leaving a review on my story. Getting a review from her was one of the most unexpected things to ever happen to me here, mainly because she's from the official FusionFall Legacy Community Team, and getting a review from her was like getting a review from Stephen King. So my story being read by her was a true honor. Thank you so much! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, especially with its focus on the KND.
> 
> I'm also thinking of taking out the Warpgates from my story after the Future. Yes, they were a part of the original game, but I find the warp-sequence to be very hard to write as it involves a transition...even though there was a transition from scene to scene in the last few lines. Also, I've got very convincing scientific evidence explaining how teleportation actually clones you and kills the original copy. There's an entire Nerdist article on the matter, and I don't feel safe about killing and cloning characters. Y'know, I'd like to be safe in this regard, especially considering what might come later on.
> 
> Rest in Peace Rumen Petkov. For those don't know, he was a Bulgarian cartoonist who was most famous for being the lead animator for Dexter's Laboratory and The Powerpuff Girls, along with pretty much almost every cartoon you guys remember from the Golden Age. Mr. Petkov died June 11th, 2018 at the full age of 70, and I know that everything that he did, including his style's influence on this story's humor and writing, will truly be missed, and this only further pains me that this chapter came so late. It's amazing when one work of art can influence another work of art, and it's certainly more amazing when that kind of stuff can happen between two different mediums of entertainment.
> 
> BTW, if you guys are wondering if these guys look any different to the way you remember them from the shows or the game, then just call the game designs to mind. I mean, not all of them look game-accurate, or at least not the versions of them from the future. As I described in the last chapter, Future-Number Five is modeled after her FF Legacy tutorial model, and Otto is modeled after his own FusionFall Retro Design, so I'll try to describe the future-costumes in more detail next time. For now, you can say that Future-Mandy looks the same as her usual game model, as does Eddy and the Providence Agents. Look, as soon as I figure out how to redirect you guys to links (which is impossible) I'll show you what designs I could see the future-people with.
> 
> Finally, I feel I need to clarify the age of the Kids Next Door. They were their original ages back in the flashbacks of Chapter 1, that being 10 years old. Here-on-out, the five year timeskip has made them 15 years of age. I know it's a concept that pretty much betrays the point of the show, but if the original game was allowed to take creative liberties with their five year timeskip, then so can I! Besides, as I just said, I'm using the usual FF designs for them, which I must say look very teenage to me. I'm not going to say what it is that made the entire KND decide to extend the decommissioning to their least favorite age range, but I do have an explanation in mind, one that I...do not plan to tell for now.
> 
> Okay, I guess that's everything I have to say after a near 9 month hiatus. See ya'round, and make sure to review the story so far. Trust me, for this chapter, I feel like I really need all the criticism I can get.
> 
> Oh and I hope you didn't notice our little change-up. If you did, please excuse the narrator of this chapter, the old one died so I had to get a new one. So if his expressive and...unique expressions are making the story confusing for you, then keep count of the number of times he does this and I'll be sure to fire him ASAP.
> 
> Good day, and see you next time...hopefully not next year...god forgive me...
> 
> NEXT CHAPTER: Hours of Future Past
> 
> -end transmission


	4. Chapter 4: Hours of Future Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold = Emphasis/Commentary
> 
> Italic = Emphasis/small memory moment
> 
> [] = Artificial Intelligence/Android Speech

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - POKEY OAKS SOUTH**

Racing away was all he could think of. Racing back to whatever resistance was left...to warn them, only if it wasn't too late. Rex Salazaar was pumping fuel into his afterburners as fast as he could, pushing all the thoughts of Providence's unavailability away with the road behind him. There was a ghastly thick green fog that blinded him, he couldn't see anything. It didn't stop him, not him with the stakes of his mission, also pushing the idea of crashing into a building that he couldn't see to the back of his head. But luckily, or unluckily, he wasn't alone. Right beside him was his ever-amazing partner-in-crime, Bobo HaHa, on the lookout for fusion monsters behind them so Rex wouldn't have to get distracted. But Rex, being ever so dangerous, looked behind anyway. All he could see was the same thick green fog that had polluted the entire Poakey Oaks Neighborhood, both North and South. Nothing new there. But what truly caught Rex's attention was the trembling (but still scowling) face and shaking hands holding a gun, the face and hands of which belonged to his chimpanzee friend. It was extremely rare to catch Bobo with fear in his eyes, but knowing what he was trembling and shaking for, it was definitely understandable.

Something _big_ was chasing them, something unheard of. It had finished decimating whatever remained of Endsville, it was plowing through countless fusion fighters at a speed unimaginable for its size, it was being called Fuse's greatest triumph. But based on it's appearance, the form it took, the survivors would've known it by another name. One that, as silly as it sounded, gave a more terrifying approach when face to face with the monster.

It sure scared the hell out of them. Bobo was looking intently into the thick green fog, and inside his chimp-gut boiled fear and frustration. He couldn't help but turning over to Rex, trying to see how things were going.

"C'mon KID! Can't you go ANY FASTER?!" the fez-wearing chimp furiously dictated.

"Cut me some slack, Bobo!" screamed the EVO teenager, looking straight ahead and unable to focus on his irate passenger. "It's not easy to just drive aaannywhere you want when there isn't enough _road to drive on_!"

"You screw this up, Rex? My chimp-ghost will chimp-haunt you for the rest of your miserable EVO-life!"

"Ah shut up, man, I'd probably be too dead to even care!" Rex said, sarcastically taunting him.

"Well the world might be goin' to shit, but I still got things to do! So either PUNCH THE ACCELERATOR OR I PUNCH THE HELL OUTTA YOU!"

"RightRightRIGHT!" Rex exclaimed, as he tried to increase his acceleration. He still kept himself wary of the road up ahead. The wind began to hit against their faces faster and faster. They had reached their top speed. With their luck here, what kind of chances did they have of everything going to hell?

Well, what happened next couldn't have possibly been foreseen. The ground shifted, formed into a structure, much like his own nanites. It looked like a hand, catching Rex off guard, but not enough to get him to lose his steer. He tried moving faster, stressing the nanites in his legs to its utmost limits, but it did no such work. The ground continued sprouting more of these hands, with Rex narrowly dodging each one of them. Bobo was loading his gun as fast as he was firing it, shooting at the ground to the best of his ability. Rex began to notice the road shifting, becoming more at an angle; they were driving towards a cliff, the road they had set on having ended. Whatever was ahead was uncertain, as it was clouded by the same green fog. Rex was not one to be fooled by fog though, and quickly recognized the signs of the approaching chasm.

"Get ready!" Rex shouted, with Bobo understanding the moment he turned his head.

Mere seconds later, they had rode the speeder off the cliff, and it was sure to fall into the sea of fusion matter. Rex could already feel the gravity pulling him down, as could Bobo. In response, he quickly shifted the nanites in his ride to form two twin turbines on his pack. Boogie Pack saves the day yet again, Rex thought, while Bobo landed on the shifting wing of the turbine with ease.

But they found that they underestimated the fusions after them, for they could adapt too. As Rex sped across the bottomless pit beneath them, he noticed something out of the corner of his goggles. Tall, green and glowing tentacle like vines sprouted out of the chasm, making jittery movements as if it was paper being quickly unfolded. They were moving further up the edges of the rockslides next to them, at a pace as fast as the Boogie pack was gliding Rex. Realizing how fast they were rising, Rex quickly pushed himself forward, the nanites surging from his body and to his machines, speeding across the abyss below at a much faster rated.

But the fusions weren't finished toying with the two yet; they sent stems of fusion matter in the opposite direction, chasing the two from both ends.

"That don't look too neat." Bobo said with dread, looking over the wing's edge. The two strands of vines kept unfolding, growing faster and faster by the second.

"I got an idea. Bobo! Jump to the side! See if you can land on the grass!" Rex shouted to his partner, pointing to the grass ahead that lay besides the road, where the sidewalk stopped short and bent out of shape. Bobo did so without hesitation, jumping as high as he could in order to make it onto the other side of the trench. For a second, it looked like he was going to make it. Bobo couldn't help but crack a grin, if they got outta this, they could brag about it to a bunch of impatient KND members, and not to mention save the world. Again.

But Bobo's eyes widened in shock as what felt like a surge of whiplash pulled his chimp-body backwards. Disappearing into the black chasm, as Rex zoomed past him. It took Rex a few more seconds to realize that the vines had caught up to them, and now they were one man down.

"BOBO!" Rex cried into the crevice, later consumed by thick green fog, having lost sight of his remaining friend. But it could only get worse from there. As his eyes were fixated back on the covered crevice, he failed to notice another extrusion that had formed at the edge; by the time he had noticed and widened his eyes in surprise, he had already crashed into the obstruction. It sent him flying, with both blood and bolts flying everywhere as the wing and turbine broke off from his body, with what remained shifting and morphing back into his body, leaving him with several large missing chunks of flesh and muscle. He tried to block his fall by extending his arms, but it didn't matter as he still hit the cold pavement of the road; his face skidded across the asphalt, he could only hold back howls of pain from that alone, but not the rest.

He couldn't begin to describe the pain he felt. Why didn't he ever find a nanite-build for something like a raft? Or better yet a pillow?!

He dragged himself as far as he could. It wasn't far enough though. Another extrusion made it's way out of the ground, Rex could feel it at his underside. He could also feel that this time it was much slower, as it took hold of his limp body. It wrapped itself around him, and held him high. Rex struggled as much as he could, the fusion matter touching his sensitive wounds didn't help his situation. But Rex wasn't too overwhelmed by the pain, not enough to distract him from what the extrusion was doing. It had taken the form of a hand, its fingers holding the EVO agent of Providence in its palm, as if it was presenting something to...someone.

Or something...

And as he realized what would happen within the next few minutes, Rex realized that the latter was much more likely.

Even without his feet touching the ground, he could feel the _thump_ of the large footsteps through the hand that held him. The _thump_ shook the road, the rubble bounced, the grass danced, the fog dispersed, with every _thump_ of its feet. It sounded paced, like a drumbeat. The _thumps_ were intimidating that way, continuing to grow louder and louder, until Rex found himself staring it in the face, its nostrils fuming with aggression.

Rex couldn't even comprehend how it basically teleported to him when it was so far away earlier on. He looked away for one second. _One_.

"N-no!" Rex protested, trying to struggle from the grip of the hand-extrusion. "¡Atrás! Stay back!" The monster did no such thing. It continued to creep toward him, the hooves on its arms twitched constantly, and it's body kept shaking. The form it took was clearly hard to maintain. It's hulking figure and pose, as well as its constant shaking (even more than other fusion dopplegangers) and the fake fur that dripped off like water off a leaf and formed little puddles of fusion matter, were all signs of this creature's potential weakness. But at that moment, who was Rex to think about weakness?

The fusion didn't bother to hide those weaknesses though, as it continued intimidating Rex. It's glowing red eyes, as big as a regular human torso, stared right past Rex's soul. The teenager was terrified. There was no telling what this thing would do to him. Would it gut him? Mind control him? Infect him?

He still couldn't tell even when the doppleganger raised its hoof for Rex's face, covering his view and muffling his shouts of pain.

* * *

**LOCATION UNKNOWN - LAST LOCATION: SECTOR V - KND TRAINING AREA**

Familiar was a word that came up a lot in this war. It certainly came up a lot for Ben when he came across familiar landmarks, places he would have been able to recognize on instant, now torn apart by strings of fusion matter. Familiar extended from the ground beneath him to the air above him. It had once smelt like nothing, yet everything at the same time, the smell of pure...liveliness. There was a sense of possibility and prosperity with every pleasant deep breath. He could remember so many people practically dancing around, laughing in joy as they too took the air in with pleasantry. It was practically a utopia in moments like those, he thought. After all, what _wasn't_ there to love? But now, he couldn't say that at all. The world around him smelled like rotten eggs, those buildings leaning over to one side. It was pressured, restrictive, the complete opposite of freedom. There were so many people dancing around...in fear, agony, despair, chaos. The line between the soldiers and the civilians were being blurred slowly, he could see both types running and flailing for their lives, hoping to find some way to survive. Ben shivered and flinched every time he had to think about it; he recounted seeing a survivor crying with a dead body, its eyes empty of the life that once filled it, as the war effort kept moving fruitlessly forward.

But the most amazing thing that Ben had to admit was that despite all this destruction, despite every possible sign that there was no chance of recovery, much less victory, hope had never been brighter before.

It was close to midnight. Nearly two days had past since they got back from Tech Square, which meant Mandark and the other tech-heads had been working non-stop to get the Time Machine up and running, and they had been sending several heroes, however few there were remaining, to find any extra parts that could be reformatted to fit the proper use. As the hours inched away, Ben grew more and more anxious towards the machine's completion. The current predicament he was in was able to distract him, but only so much.

Fusion Number Two and his legion of Shocktanglars (a collection of tangled wires infected by fusion matter) were planning a large scale attack on Sector V, planning to finally take out the treehouse. The fusion bomb squad seemed to also be carrying some valuable technology that could have been of use to Mandark, so the mission was basically to kill two bugs with one stone. Ben found himself accompanied by several KND operatives, who unfortunately spent more time staring at him rather than paying attention to the spawn right in front of them (he couldn't count the number of times he had to save them, either).

That was something that sort of bugged him, though. Any time he just wanted to take a stroll out in the safe-spaces, he could hear chattering and whispering about him. They were all most likely chatting about the time machine, and that there was in fact a fighting chance for the future yet. Ben found himself giddy with the same excitement towards that goal, as it meant for him that he could go back home and warn the world about the impending onslaught, but the KND were solely believing that it would happen. Ben was all about optimism, no doubt, but by having your life dependent on a time machine that hasn't been completed yet despite the state of the world? The alien hero didn't want to discourage hope, but he didn't want to encourage ungrounded faith either. What was even weirder was that they weren't able to determine the specifics of the mission he was on. At this point, nothing was fully confirmed. Ben hated that it had to be kept that way, though. Mandark wasn't one to call anything a done deal until he was sure it was done. But the point was that he questioned how a large group of kids could place their hopes in a machine or mission that even _they_ didn't fully know about.

It perplexed the young plumber, but it wasn't like he couldn't sympathize with that kind of hope. He'd always been caught in tricky situations before, hopeless situations that would have made him discard his precious racing jacket. But he never did.

Hope was a weird thing to him in that way.

But right now wasn't the time to be thinking about that. They had a bombing squad to squish. Hidden behind random stalagmites, commonly found in fusion lairs like these, two KND agents on Ben's left were signaled by him to covertly strike the fusion monsters. They nodded in response, and moved further into the cave. They each climbed up on random stalagmites, and set up shops for sniping. They took out many of the Shocktanglars within the vicinity, clearing a path for the heroes quietly.

As Ben waited for the two operatives to finish, he turned to his side to see several of his KND soldiers staring at him. Each of them had their eyes wide open, not paying attention to the battlefield in front (as usual with this team) or the guns that had a better attention span then them. It was a little creepy.

Ben had to admit though, it was a nice change of pace for him to be stared at with nothing to say, instead of being constantly shoved into spotlights with the news. It just didn't help though that their stares were more out of fear and tension rather than...well, anything else that didn't come with a crapsack world.

But somehow, one operative of the KND had the guts to break that silence while they were still hiding behind the stalagmites.

"So...you're the dude!" the operative whispered quietly.

Ben slowly turned his neck to face the shy operative. Why'd he call him 'the dude'? He was on the news more times than he had fingers, what was stopping him from calling him 'Ben 10'? "Uh-huh..." he callously responded. Admittedly, he knew he could have phrased that better, but seriously, was that all he was? 'The dude'?

"Look, I know that the nerds told you not to say much...but ya think you could, y'know, tell us?" the operative asked as politely as possible. "I mean, it comes easy for things like, uh, team motivation, teamwork, the kind of stuff that'll push out the fusions? Any of that and I'm sure we could do a lot more!"

Another KND popped out of her hiding spot, and addressed the concern of the conversation directly. "Yeah, I mean you're the one who gets to go back in time and save us all! You don't feel a little bit excited to tell us anything?"

"Dude, I know, but...not right now, okay? We've got fusions already on our tail-end, so could you guys please prioritize?" Ben explained to the excited agents, just as he was peeking over the pointed tip of the rock in front of him. "We oughta focus on them."

Seeing the signal to move, Ben signaled the rest of the troops forward. They paced themselves to silence their running, each footstep kept quiet as if running on a carpet. As they ran further into these areas, they increased the pacing going further into the maze of caves. The plan was to keep things on the down-low until they had to take on the big bad itself, necessitating the need to take Fusion Two out faster. Ben pulled out the NanoCom and activated the Radar function. He could see a surge of fusion matter, leveling that of hydrogen fuel cells.

Those must have been the bombs that Fuse was planning to use on the treehouse.

Ben was so immersed in the mission at the moment that he not only couldn't think about that, but he failed to notice that they were at the final stretch. Most of the Shocktanglars were eliminated thanks to their snipers, and now, it was just up to them to take out the fusion doppleganger of Number Two.

Fusion Number Two hovered in the air with a standard KND F.L.A.P.P.U.H ( _ **F** lapping **L** awnmower **A** pparatus **P** ropelling **P** eople **U** p **H** igh)_, shaking maniacally as most fusion dopplegangers did, and with the tiniest plasma beams crossing its face, forming something akin to an insane smile. The goggles were glowing brightly red, and were fused to the rest of his gooey skin. It was tinkering around with different machines, assumingly working on more bombs after his squad had just diffused his last batch, but upon closer inspection, he was actually modifying his rifle. Ben made sure to keep himself and the squad hidden from the fusion's sight. This had to be a surprise attack, it was the only way to ensure a positive victory against a fusion with hydrogen fuel bombs right next to him.

But it later appeared that the element of surprise was not on their side, as the same fanboy operative looked up and whispered to his friends.

"Guys?"

"What?" they all asked in response, whispering carefully.

"Where are the snipers?"

Ben's eyes widened in shock with that question. He looked up behind him to find that the snipers once resting on the top of the cavern were indeed missing.

This wasn't good, he thought.

And that turned out to be true. Suddenly, an explosion came _from literally nowhere to be seen_ and had the heroes on their backs a few feet away, thrown back from the explosion.

When Ben opened his eyes, _Fusion Number Two was coming right for him_. He came to the unfortunate realization that their secret operation wasn't so secret as he had tried to make it. He was just lucky that someone shot the doppleganger before it could hurt him. He quickly got up and moved back, seeing the KND operatives aiming at Fusion Number Two's head. But what the fusion did next was...strange.

It pressed its hand down onto the surface below, triggering a minuscule shockwave of energy and causing raw fusion matter to ooze out of the ground. The doppleganger seemed like it was enjoying this action, raising its head and looking up as if both in incredible excitement and pain. It coughed up more of the green goo, essentially having it drip from its face for the purpose of its ritual. From the fusion matter, shapes began to form. The KND kept their rifles facing the fusions, not knowing what to expect.

Small, clown-faced bombs that were around the size of a fusion spawn were what ended up materializing from the ground, fusion matter stitching together each particle. It looked horrific, like someone had decided to carve a jack-o-lantern out of a giant metal ball. An accurate simile for what stood before this group of soldiers. But they only used it out of fear, because they had no idea what to call these new monsters.

"Dude, what're those things?" a KND operative asked Ben, expecting him to have the answers.

"Um...you tell me..." Ben retorted, clearly not from around then.

The bombs then jumped high into the air, squeezing down in a manner similar to crouching. These bombs made themselves clear in their monstrosity, as they rocketed back down and attacked each fighter. Behind them, Fusion Number Two roared in fury, commanding the beasts around it to attack their enemies.

But what was more concerning was how lightning fast these fusions were moving. One moment they were there and the next they weren't. The KND were at this point waving their rifles, not knowing where to shoot.

Ben jumped behind a stalagmite and readied his watch for a transformation; he saw the fanboy contrasting his comrades. Rather than dancing with his gun to the fear of an attack, he was petrified. He sweat profusely and shook his head with fear, not knowing where these things would strike next.

What was unfortunate for him was that he looked away for a second, and the monster finally appeared and blew him up and away. Ben, having observed everything that had happened with this operative, could see a limp body higher up. He couldn't tell if he had survived that or not.

Thankfully, an answer for Ben came much faster than he expected. The operative shouted to everyone, "I'm okay...I think!", signaling his well-being...but not his immediate pain.

It didn't take long for Ben to realize what had just happened.

Either those _stupid little_ _soulo shells_ were invisible, or they could teleport. Either one really wasn't going to be better for them.

Ben 10 cracked his neck and decided to bring out the aliens. Bringing out the correct setting via the watch's rim, he proudly proclaimed "It's hero time!" as he slammed the Omnitrix and ended up transforming into a Petrosapien sample, Diamondhead.

Wait, Diamondhead?! Damnit, Omnitrix, he wanted Big Chill!

"Diamondhead?! _Oh, come on_!" Ben complained. Sometimes this watch actually did bend to his will, and sometimes it just wanted to screw around with him. It got _really_ annoying at times. "Fine, let's see what I can do..." As Diamondhead, he processed his surroundings, which unfortunately remained unchanged. The KND were still flailing their guns around without aim, not knowing what to shoot.

"Stay still, dangnabbit!" Another KND agent shouted futilely. The bomb kept moving around him, circling him like a bullseye target. It finally tackled him and exploded anyway and sent him flying too at a speed that could kill. Luckily for that operative, Diamondhead entered the frame and saved him, catching him like a football. Ben gave the kid a reassuring look, ensuring his safety, before sending a barrage of crystal shards to the area where the bomb showed up. Of course he ended up missing, with no sign that any of the shards took out the bombs.

"There!" A soldier pointed to Ben's back, finally catching one of the bombs out of obscurity, causing him to quickly grow a large cluster of crystal at his hand, sharp enough to be a sword. But just as he attempted to stab the little fusion behind him, it _disappeared_ again! Then it reappeared on his left, tempting Ben to take another stab at it, disappearing _again_. As the KND kept trying to fight these things, Ben had asked the question on everyone's minds.

"Where the hell do these things keep going?!" he said with frustration. He already knew they could basically teleport, or move at extremely high speeds, but their disappearances were getting _extremely frustrating_. He shot as many crystal-spikes as he could at the ground, spinning around in the hopes that at he could find at least _one_ spot where they would be.

And just like last time...he missed.

"Damnit. I'm gonna try something!" Ben shouted to all the operatives. "Everyone move out of the way!"

When everyone did, the alien hero threw down his arms and fists into the ground, extending his crystalline nature with this area of the fusion lair, causing _humungous_ shards of crystal to pop out of the ground. It barely missed the KND soldiers, but appeared to hit exactly who Ben had intended to hit. Once Ben retracted the crystalline structures, several bombs began to show themselves, looking less alive than before, and were actually visible this time! Ben's plan worked. These _stupid little_ _soulo shells_ were finally down, leaving them with bigger fish to fry.

With the living bombs all defeated, Fusion Number Two brought itself into the battle. But the cowardly assumptions the operatives had been voicing earlier were all proven to be false, beating several KND agents down with relative ease, throwing them to walls and sending them flying across the catacomb. A shard of diamond attacked the violent green doppleganger from its side, as Ben began to take on Fusion Number Two, both sides refusing to wave the white flag.

While that was happening, the KND operatives heard various noises come from further back in the lair. It was exactly what they feared. The Shocktanglars had begun to respawn. The KND focused their attention to Fusion Number Two's legion, readying their weapons. Ben looked over to see that, but it wasn't out of courage or bravery. It was out of fear.

He really wished he could have said those words of confidence earlier...but for their sake, it was never too late.

"Hey! You guys wanted words of advice or somethin'? Don't think about losing, or even how I should win! Just put up, nut up, or shut up!" Ben said, grunting as Fusion Two pressed him down against the ground, with Ben trying his hardest to push him off. "Worry about yourselves for a change! I thought that was what this whole war-thing was about! Fighting for our own and all! I'm just askin' you to fight for your own a little more right now!"

Ben admitted those weren't his best words of confidence, as he much rather preferred rallying inclusiveness, but being under pressure and seeing no other alternative speech were the big factors. But it ultimately worked, as the fear faded away from everyone's eyes, changing their expressions. These were no longer the eyes of soldiers. They were the eyes of true operatives.

"Hey guys! Let Diamondhead over there finish that fight! Everybody take out the monsters!" one of the agents shouted, rallying the troops to massacre the evil human-killing monsters before them.

The agents turned and ran from Ben's rustle with the fusion, chasing those Shocktanglars across the area, firing on them and making sure to target each one. As the KND agents dealt with the monsters, having leapt to the side to avoid Fusion Two, Ben continued fighting the fusion doppleganger, and punched it with sheer brutality to a point that caused the caverns to _crack_. The hero jumped forward to the fusion and relentlessly drove his Petrosapien fists into the doppleganger's chest at rapid fire, hurting the fusion and causing its form to begin to deteriorate.

Ben figured that with Fusion Number Two weakened, now would be a good time to switch things up, and make sure that it was done for good. Pressing the symbol on his chest, he shifted from Diamondhead to a much sleeker and skinnier alien. Purple and magenta in color, translucent in transparency, Chromastone charged all the energy around him into his body, and fired it on the fusion in the form of a powerful concussive blast. Ben could see that whatever he was doing, his cosmix nanites were kicking in, slowly obliterating Fusion Number Two.

The monster once again roared in fury, then in agony as the attack from the Crystalsapien tore it to pieces.

Ben let out a long breath, with another mission successfully completed, and Sector V remained safe. It wasn't saving the universe, but it was just as good, Ben thought.

"Woohoo! Nice work, guys!" Ben shouted as he collected the doppleganger's fusion matter. But no one returned the sentiment. "G-guys?" Looking behind him, he saw all of the KND troops either exhausted or in unimaginable pain. None of them were up, nor did they attempt to get up. Half of them were covered in splattered fusion matter (a miracle was that they all survived getting blown up), yet all of them were moaning in complete agony. Elsewhere, a Shocktanglar started to move again next to an armed KND agent.

"You missed a spot..." one operative tiredly pointed out to the agent.

"Don't judge me..." the KND agent rebutted as he shot the last remaining Shocktanglar.

Ben let out another sigh, this time from his deadpan reaction. "C'mon, let's get back to Hero's Square." Ben said as he walked towards the fusion portal. He thought back to his victory here. If it hadn't been for them, the remains of the KND would have fallen, along with any chance of the time machine being constructed, forever dooming the earth.

But that didn't happen. Not here, not now, and hopefully if they continued this way, not ever.

Maybe there was a much brighter hope than ever before.

He couldn't see how anything wouldn't be going according to plan, and as long as he kept getting to fight these things and protecting others, he felt he'd be just fine.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 25 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE**

Dexter wasn't exactly fond of others criticizing him. Unless it was from like-minded geniuses such as Mandark, he failed to understand why there would be judgement where no proper assessment of that judgement could be given. After all, being a boy genius meant all of his detractors would be less intellectually capable than him. What possible criticisms of his inventions could they have if they couldn't comprehend such feats of science?

The Powerpuff Girls fell into this category, somewhat barring two members of their family. Dexter kept brainstorming on how he was going to break down the situation to Townsville's most beloved superheroines, wondering how much they would understand and how much they would beat him up for it. Although, he had already discussed it on the phone, though he hadn't specified the more intricate details, such as the identity of the subject, the mechanics of the time machine, and why they had to start cleaning up crime in Bellwood. The girls and the professor were already informed on everything else, and he could only guess which of them were frustrated with him.

It had taken them a while to get here, and he couldn't blame them. Unfortunately, due to Ben's disappearance, the city of Bellwood had been in desperate need of saving and protection. Within the last two days, there were armed robberies, kidnappings, a supervillain with a demented clown-gimmick. The Powerpuff Girls had to deal with Ben's monsters while he was...away. Because of that, an uneasiness grew in Dexter's stomach. What would those girls _do_ to him when they would learn that all the stress of flying across cities and punching monsters they have no proper experience with would be because of him.

*Gulp*

As they entered through the front door, each of the girls flying in one at a time, Dexter kept on brainstorming. What was fascinating to himself was that he was maintaining composure while worrying about it all. Though, he couldn't help but notice the girls' new "costumes". He had seen them on the news in these new attires, but rarely up-close, and the design was an intuitive and more modern update on the usual aesthetic. Each of the girls wore what appeared to be flexible cloth-spandex-like under-armor that covered most of their torso. On top of that were the usual expectations. Blossom and Bubbles wore half-shirts over their tops, while Buttercup instead adopted a mini-jacket that also only covered the top half of her torso, each one in their signature colors. This was accompanied with matching pairs of skirts, with an extra white line circling each one in their fabric. Under hers, however, Buttercup wore a black pair of leggings that reached half-way down her calves. Blossom had something similar, but it instead reached a little higher than her knees, while Bubbles's was completely obscured underneath her own skirt. All of the girls shared similar white socks, replacing the white knee-high ones they used to wear. As the girls sped towards Dex with their still-impressive power of flight, and the laser-like sound following their every movement, Dexter began as Professor Utonium calmly walked toward him.

This...was going to be hard to explain any further...

Having cleared his throat, he finally was able to greet them after two days of waiting. "Greetings, Utonium family."

"Hi, Dexter." Blossom said, polite as ever, but with an underlying seriousness in her voice. "It's been a while." Dexter nodded in response. Amongst those aforementioned detractors, Blossom came close to being a certified genius... _very close_. Dexter could only fear what things she would say or _do_ to him in response to the mess behind him. At least her polite attitude calmed him down enough to believe that they weren't _mad_ about this...yet.

"Yeah, a while long enough for you to have screwed this up."

"Language, Buttercup." Blossom said, scolding her sister.

"You serious, Blossom? "Screw" is 'language' now?" Buttercup asked sarcastically, later turning her attention to Dexter. "Besides, I'm only saying how much he _screwed_ this up more than he _screws_ in those nuts and bolts, and how he's _screwing_ his workers over with _more_ _screws_ and nuts and bolts without any extra pay to fix _his screw-up_ that started this _screwed-up_ mess. Am I right?"

Blossom could only roll her eyes and sigh. There was a limit to how much she would usually object to obscene language, and then there was the limit where she just wouldn't give a care. With that sentence, Blossom was sure Buttercup had managed to cross both lines in her head, as well as a third one that had yet to be discovered by her enhanced intellect. Surprisingly, though, _Computress_ was now the one to call out her sister's foul mouth.

[Any further attempts to belittle Dr. McPherson in his presence will result in your escorting off the premises; solution: insults are prohibited towards the good doctor] Computress passive-aggressively warned over the lab's audio system. Blossom couldn't help but smirk. Revenge is so sweet sometimes, she thought.

"I'll call him whatever I want...but seriously? That's what _they_ call you now? "Dr. McPherson"?" said Buttercup, still mocking the boy-genius in any way she could while her sisters could only pinch their nose-bridges and face-palm. "What was the doctorate in, though? Setting-up- _Mojo_ -levels-of-security? Or was it the M.D in risking-the-life-of-a-teenage-boy-in-a-time-machine-without-any-initial-testing-before?"

Dexter took that in well. Too well, Buttercup thought. The boy genius took a deep breath, and processed all the contents of Buttercup's ranting as calmly but quickly as possible. A response was ready within seconds. "If I can recall, either one would be one more doctorate than you have, Buttercup." he retorted. Shots fired.

"Watch it, four-eyes. Remember that one flick of my finger equals one broken skull for you." she said. "Point being, if you're capable of royally screwing up a time machine, with or without your sister's help, then why should _we_ even call you _Dr._ McPherson to begin with?"

"Heehe-wait," Bubbles interjected. "If he's not "Dr. McPherson" to us, then he doesn't have a last name to us, so what's his last name supposed to be to us again?" The blue Powerpuff girl smiled so widely that her understanding of the situation was completely ambiguous to Buttercup, visibly annoyed by her sister's apparent air-headedness, or her sister's whimsical wit.

"W-wha-not now Bubbles!" Buttercup whined, taken aback by the mischievous smirk of the seemingly "daft" sister.

"Whatever." Bubbles retorted, having finished teasing her sister enough. "But what I just don't get is why Deedee is the subject of Dexter's blame-game."

"Hey, no one's ruling Deedee out for her fault, but Dexter was the one who didn't tighten his security."

"Why, though?" Bubbles asked, analyzing the situation on her own. "She managed to bypass enough security protocols that would even make Mojo or Fuzzy break a sweat, and she managed to activate a fully operational and protected panel for a highly advanced machine in some way, right? What part of that is "stupid"?"

"Why do you think we came all the way to Siyenn City to ask to him about it?"

"Okay, enough you two." Blossom commanded, "But my sisters have a fair point, Dexter. For someone as "stupid" as your sister, she really does know how to keep breaking into a state-of-the-art scientific research facility like here."

"So then, how about we ask the million-dollar question." the Professor began, the seriousness in his voice overpowering the hyper environment that the girls created. Yet another reason for Dexter to have been shaking in his boots. "Why was there a button that, when pressed and activated, collectively collapsed the machine's functions and resulted in...this mess?"

"No single button can be considered responsible for this chain reaction of explosions." Dexter replied almost immediately. "The working hypothesis is that Deedee disrupted the Dexbot necessary for the security system, causing a silent failure. This could have been what deactivated the protection settings for the panels, and offset all the buttons to a random listing of settings. Deedee pressed many of them with her giant hand, as there was no big red button, but there were several buttons and nobs and levers meant to be used in specific orders of function, so as to properly calibrate the time machine for a preferred setting. Without that calibration, the button-mashing must have caused a catastrophic system failure, leading to a chain reaction of functions crossing functions, and the...inevitable explosion."

Professor Utonium carefully went through every step of that butterfly effect. One area of Dexter's explanation of the control system was particularly illogical to him, and appeared to be the most major issue. "Firstly, Dexter, why would you allow for your buttons to be offset? Why is there even a function for different settings and different orders of actions per button? Why couldn't there just be buttons for simple operations?"

"Managing a time machine is not the same as splashing a vat of flavorings with a highly radioactive substance. This isn't chemistry we are dealing with, Professor." Dexter said, the impact of his insult felt like a punch to the gut for the girls. It wasn't nice at all. "Button-mashing is the only possible way she could have caused a system failure, as the order of buttons wasn't appropriated for simple handling!"

"Okay, first, that insult? Really low, Dex. Second, there's just one issue I don't understand..." Bubbles began again, still paying attention, "how come no one heard or noticed her come in until after she disabled the security and after she destroyed the science project?"

Ignoring the crude denotation of his time machine as a 'science project', Dexter had thought long and hard about why that was, or so it seemed. He remembered what Deedee was wearing, and was just too ashamed to tell the girls. Eventually, he built up some courage to tell them, no matter how weird it sounded. "Well...she was wearing her ballet shoes...and no one noticed her until it was too late..."

Dexter was right in assuming that the Utonium family would react negatively. "Again, Dexter, you ever stop to think that maybe Deedee isn't so stupid after all?" Bubbles said. "I think I have to keep repeating the fact that she's managed to figure out how to operate control panels that she's never seen before since your lab's inception. Control panels that I think even _I_ would have a hard time hacking into."

"Machinery has absolutely-wait, what about hacking?"

"Nothing! It's nothing, Dexter." the Professor shouted, silencing Bubbles much to her disdain. "Continue on."

Looking at Bubbles suspiciously for only a few seconds, he returned to his argument. "As I was saying, machinery has absolutely _nothing_ to do with how _stoopid_ my sister has become."

"Yet you're making it about machinery." Bubbles tried pointing out.

"No, I am not. Deedee could not have possibly found her way into my lab for the simple reason of luck or observation. If she knew _where_ she was going, then she would never have come here at all. There was in fact a sign on our front door _that read_ not to enter! Yet she treated it as a simple afterthought, and of course this is not the first time this has happened, this has happened far too many times to consider it as an anomaly in her behavior!"

"It couldn't have happened _that_ often..." Bubbles tried saying, before being hushed by her older sister.

"Let him finish, Bubbles." Blossom whispered to Bubbles, having realized where Dexter was going with his point. "But if that's the case, Dex...what do you mean when you're calling her stupid?"

Dexter took a deep breath once more. This is a question he had been waiting to answer since he was 7, and an answer had been boiling up inside his mind to just spill when the time would come. "Have I ever told you about the time that Deedee mistook a turtle for a bird?" he began, surprising the girls and the Professor. How could one mistake a turtle for a bird? "It had the shell of a turtle, the skin of a turtle, the design of a turtle, the _color_ of a turtle, and yet somehow she saw feathers and beaks on a creature so small and so devolved it could not possibly have developed such traits! She was _stubborn_ in that belief, even my parents could see the turtle for what it was. Even her friends from her ballet classes, ones that have also once partook in the destruction of my inventions with complete and _utter_ ignorance, could easily tell that the bird was a turtle. Deedee has always been this ignorant, mistaking turtles for birds, mistaking _highly sensitive lab equipment for little plastic **toys**_ _._ And now, _look at the mess before you._ " Dexter continued on, keeping the girls tense towards his rant. They didn't know how to even react. "Every time Deedee has come into my laboratory, _destroyed_ hard work where days, or even months were spent on it, I always thought that whatever panels or button she presses, it looks to her like some kind of... _tabletop_! A drum kit, school desk, anything that doesn't look like some kind of highly sensitive control panels that could kill anyone within a 5 mile _radius_! She has shown _too much_ to me to the point where her ignorance could be confused with...a word that I wouldn't even say...but it has gotten so close! She lets herself be consumed by her undying ignorance, and now because of that, someone completely innocent and care-free has been sent into an undocumented future, disappearing from the world entirely! I highly doubt there is any other word that could describe someone like my sister. Confused? Hardly. Ignorant, close but no. The only true word, that perfect idiom, is **_stupidity_**!"

Dexter finished his demeaning fervor with panting. The Powerpuff Girls, who had fought monsters the size of skyscrapers, battled villains of unimaginable concept, never looked so surprised and flabbergasted by Dexter's harsh words. It would be Buttercup that broke the silence.

"Harsh words." she said. "But I...well...actually-"

Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, a high-pitched and cacophonic sound filled the entire lab. [ **Alert! Alert! Alert! Alert! Alert! Alert!** ] said Computress, her voice echoing as loud as possible through the lab, [ **Scientific anomaly - Detected!** ]

"Why do you have a siren for this crap?" Buttercup shouted. "Can't you just be informed about it the normal way?"

"Nothing about me is norm-Computress, cease that blaring alarm!" Dexter responded, to which Computress followed. "Report already. What is it?"

* * *

**ELSEWHERE ON THE KND MOON BASE**

"Anyone ever tell you that you suck at this?"

"Yeah, someon' did, Numbuh $1.50 an hour." Four shot back at Two, with a mischievous grin on his face that was all too indicative of why that particular operative wasn't anywhere to be found.

Two widened his eyes, his goggles shifting accordingly, with a brief feeling of worry for what had happened to the lawyer-operative. The hullabaloo in the hall had reached it's highest level, to the point where the case had to be put into recess. Not to mention, 1776 had a science project that she had to work on, amongst other things. But court was back in session, and back in session was another day of guilt and misery for Number Two...

"Day Two of Number Two's case is now in session. Let the record show that there was no session yesterday, due to a personal matter of mine. I'm glad that we have also come to the conclusion that Number 363 is a bit of a moron." 1776 began. "Number Two, this trial has made the generous offer to drop the traitorous charges against you. However, your appeal regarding the investigation of the crash in the Kids Next Door communications channel is yet to be judged."

"Hurry this thing the heck up already!" one bucket-wearing KND operative said in the crowd. "I wanna call my mom!"

"What's stopping you from just going back to Earth?" another operative asked.

"I actually got grounded, so...you know...adults. She's probably called the police already..."

"And she can keep waiting, Number 398. I'm holding you in contempt of KND court for wasting everyone's time! The same goes for you too, 78!" 1776 said, much to the groaning of the two operatives. She was also understandably tired of this case, feeling it was taking far too much time. "Now, Number Two. Recount how a job like the one you had been given would usually play out."

"I...I'm not sure of all the details, since Number 274 usually does the maintenance check anyway. But first, I'd get the satellite on whatever base I'm stationed on up and running, then I'd have to deactivate the firewalls within a timeframe of five minutes each time I sync up the frequencies of two different areas of space. First we'd establish global communication, then lunar communication, and then the rest of the Solar System would come next. I can tell you he's given me the job before, and that I've usually had no problem doing it! What's even weirder is that the Moon Base's frequencies _were_ in sync when I was on the job, and now they aren't! I swear, it's like aliens are messing with the comms or the adults are with some kinda virus!"

"Blasphemy! Adults and Aliens be one and the same! So says our lord and prophet-"

"Oh shut up, Number 201.2!"

"I have the right of religion, douchebag!" the devout operative stated in defense.

"Guys, please shut up, I don' wanna stay here." another nameless operative voiced in the crowd, silencing the impending argument.

With that out of the way, 1776 continued her judgement. "Regardless, our records show that Number 274 had delegated the responsibility of maintaining communications throughout the Solar System to Number Two. As it is evident, our comms are down, and we are as in the dark as the average joe." said 1776. "Number Two, I repeat while you have successfully proven that the secondary charges against are completely fabricated, the original accusation remains. Do you know what happened, and did you cause it on purpose or on accident?"

Two took a deep breath, and carefully thought out his response. "I didn't do it."

The court _once again_ descended into shouting and accusing.

1776 pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Number Two, I think you need to give me a better answer than that."

"What better answer is there? I swear on the snot in my nose and whatever blood that's still running in my grandma and one thousand slices of pizza that _I didn't do it_! Maybe it was some kind of new adult interference!" Two tried to reason. "You said that some of our troops were kidnapped by Father, right? Maybe he stole some of their tech, and reverse-engineered it so-"

"Father has kidnapped troops before, y'know. It wouldn't make sense that after so long, he'd choose now to do it." another audience member shouted. "Also, there's another thing, _only_ you got the _codes_ to the commlinks!"

"No, I was _lent_ the codes to the commlinks. 274 should still have them, wherever he is right now, but even _he's having trouble_ getting his comms up and running!"

"Yeah? How can you be so sure?!" the operative kept arguing.

Two, on the other hand, could see steps ahead of where this was going. "You mean like how I can be so sure that this is gonna end with some really bad illuminati joke?"

The operative was caught off-guard by that prediction, darting her eyes away from Two in shame. 1776 was through with these distractions, though. "Order by the turnip, dangnabbit!" she shouted. The conspiring operative slowly sank into her seat, while Two returned back to the topic at hand.

"Maybe there were others that could hack inta the sys-" Four attempted to argue, before being interrupted again.

"Look, Number 1776, I know that I failed my job, and I'm super sorry about it. But I keep telling you, whatever happened didn't happen because of me! The other systems seemed functional, but the response was what failed! Maybe if you guys could send some squads to the other bases, we could see what's even happening!"

"We DID send squads to our other bases!"

"With a form of video feed?"

"Yeah."

"And?" Two asked impatiently. "Did any of them respond or send those feeds?"

"I don't think that sending a live video feed directly to Moon Base would be actually possible _with the comms down_!"

Oh yeah, Two thought. He'd forgotten about that.

Solutions to find the next clue in this irritating mystery surged through his mind. He was stumbling to find any possible solution to the KND's legit problem. They had no form of communication between sectors, much less the planetary bases of the Solar System's outer rim, and the higher-ups seemed to keep themselves enclosed within the box rather than thinking outside it. He began thinking that this sort of problem could move faster if he tried working on the problem more on Earth, there he would have access to other tools like those fancy Dexlabs Na-

Oh, wait a minute...

Why didn't he think of that sooner?

Two cleared his throat, casting a spell of silence on all the operatives. It reassured him to say the least, as he knew that they were just as concerned for their safety. Two had decided at that point to stop beating the bush and just suggest his plan already.

"Well, we _could_ use the NanoComs."

Despite the sympathy towards the operatives in the room he had expressed to himself, this was the complete opposite of how he wanted them to react. -Rather than the 'oohs' and 'ahhs' of realization Two had hoped for, there were more whispers in the courtroom, even gasps of horror. Gasps of horror turned a few shouts. A few shouts turned into a chorus of aggression once again, all of the operatives practically singing in unison for their hatred of Number Two's plan. They were saying some crude things, like 'defiling KND law' or 'risking exposure'.

Oh yeah, that's why he didn't think of it.

What was more unexpected was for 1776 to actually refrain the court's aggression, joining in on their harsh melody. "I SAID! ORDER. BY THE GOD-DANG. TURNIP!" she shouted, silencing everyone in good measure, then turning to Two menacingly. "Number Two, it is a direct violation of Kids Next Door directive, as dictated in the Grand Book of KND, that NanoComs are a certified risk against our _secrecy_!

"Yeah, yeah, I know that Number One wrote that thing in the book after the terrafuser incident five years ago. But c'mon your honor! Desperate times call for desperate measures! Providence, let alone Earth's governments have nothing on our global and universal network, so what are we going to do if, say, _Stickybeard_ decided to ram the Moon Base or the Earth in a surprise attack?! It's not like it hasn't happened before, right? So we can't just assume we're completely fine sitting ducks!"

"Heya, 1776?" Four asked politely. "I think we may need another recess to adjust some things."

"NO YOU-" 1776 cut herself off. She was getting extremely tired of the case going on for so long. If only she was younger, she wouldn't have to worry about moronic things like _homework_ or _school projects_ or _after-school clubs_. But now, her mom was yappin' so much more than before. Yappin' about SATs and ERBs and etcetera. It was driving her crazy, and it almost made her forget to grant Two that right to recess. " _Fiiiiinnnnnee!_ You can get your dang recess and...talk about more ways to make this longer than usual."

Contrastingly, Two and Four let out a large sigh of relief. They just bought themselves more time. 1776 was obviously disenchanted by this; sometimes she wished these things could move a little faster, and maybe then her mom would get off her back.

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE**

As XLR8, Ben sped back to the KND treehouse, having fully evacuated the operatives from the Fusion Lair. He didn't need to transform into his most hyperactive alien to feel the relief and excitement that was overtaking him at the moment, as he looked forward to the progress Mandark and Otto had made on the new temporal gateway.

"Himbacksowayouneedmetadu?" Ben slurred; having forgotten to transform back prevented from speaking coherently. Mandark could only look over his shoulder in disbelief at the panting Kineceleran. Dexter had once called him someone who explained too much or too fast, so Mandark could tell that none of the words Ben had just sped his mouth through were any proper form of English.

"Come back when you can speak English, XLR8." Mandark said. "None of us here are capable of speaking drool."

"Yeah, srry," Ben apologized as he transformed back into his regular human form. "I'm just checking in, seeing if I need to do anything to help. Is there anything you need for help?" He kept asking impatiently, to the point where it was annoying even to Otto.

"Nothing at the moment...aside from explaining your surprising spike in confidence."

Ben didn't see why he needed to explain that. "Ain't it obvious? I'm just excited for the fact that your entire crapsack world's gonna get completely revamped! Last I checked, that's an opportunity you've always wanted, dude!"

"An opportunity you _jeopardized_ when you decided to tackle Fusion Number Two head on." Mandark countered with a bizarre degree of worry, like he remained angry but stoic at the same time, where the anger was most present in his attitude. "Perhaps you have failed to recognize the fact that you are extremely important to our experiment."

"Hey, cut Ben some slack, Mandark." said Otto, defending Ben's stance in this case. "Might I remind you that without his help, we wouldn't have gotten tons of data and intel on the fusions' next moves. You can't brush something like that off and say he should more careful." Ben pointed his arm to Otto, as if trying to prove his point, with a look of sarcasm too.

Mandark found himself having to concede to that logic. "Admittedly, your most recent exploits have brought us some ray of hope, and a surprising amount of motivation to our ranks. But I still rest my case. No matter how surprised we are regarding your adaptation to this world, risking yourself to fight fusions is dangerous."

"Yeah, I think I'm more surprised by the fact that you're really limiting what I can do." Ben rebutted.

"You thwarted a bombing."

" _By stopping Fusion Number Two_." Ben argued. Without his defeat of Fusion Two, none of those operatives could have made it out alive, and the treehouse would be in major jeopardy. "Also, it didn't help by having to stay in the back lines rather than the front. A whole lot of KND ops could've gotten themselves killed if I didn't step in; hell, they were really close to that anyway."

"If you assessed it that way, then the Kids Next Door need to improve their defense tactics, and you need to start paying attention when your order is to _not_ endanger yourself." Mandark argued, earning him some very angry stares and glares from several KND scientists within earshot. "Besides, those operatives were under direct orders to keep you safe as much as possible. If what you're saying about how their attention really affected them, then that is more worrying altogether." Mandark did not care enough to notice their insulted impressions, and turned back to grab another device, a Mandark Industries micro-USB, and went to hand it to Ben.

"Whatever the case, your next assignment is to take this. You may review through it on your NanoCom, and see if there might be anything we can add."

"What is it again?"

"It is a list."

"A list of what?"

"A list of every possible addition we could have made as countermeasures against Lord Fuse, but failed to do just that."

"Including the nano's appearance?" Ben asked, looking up from the USB.

"Y-yes…" Mandark said, with a head so heavy with humiliation it drooped down.

"Good. What else?"

"The systems we implemented for the war, and the systems we should have implemented generally. For example, this plan for an app will establish a neural link between the NanoCom and the nanites around the brain's dopamine center points; it would be able to automatically summon whatever item is needed without having to scroll or slide down the inventory page."

"You and Dexter…didn't think of this earlier? I mean, I - ?"

"I know, I know, scrolling down drop-down after drop-down is absolutely and insufferably pointless and dangerous." Mandark admitted once again. "Hence why we had it produced for this mission."

"Which you only thought of…towards the end of this war?"

"I already failed this species when I wrongly believed quality was better than quantity with the nano, okay? I am very well aware there are more such failures that I-"

"It's called a mistake, Simon, it ain't gonna kill you."

Rather than interpreting Ben's comment as reassuring, Mandark found that to be the opposite. The unfortunate truth of the matter was that he didn't think of these things when it had to be thought of.

"So," asked Ben, "what now?"

Mandark moved out of his trance and back into reality. "As Otto is also stranded in this time, he shall be accompanying you. Although, we would need to send you two to your exact time period, in accordance with how many days you have spent here."

"So, you're not returning me to the exact moment I left? Why?"

"Larry 3000's head has a limited supply of tachyon particles, a certain percentage of which may have to be discarded entirely in order to keep the density and space surrounding the particles balanced. Whatever particles left would not be enough to send you to exactly when you left." Mandark explained. "Besides, sending you to a slightly further date lines up our timelines, could build a much more believable case to Dexter that you came from the future, and lessens the risks of a paradox."

Ben couldn't argue with the Paradox logic. Time travel was always a tricky case for him. "Sure." he responded, fully understanding the game plan for the time machine. However, behind the two, something strange was going on. Otto was on the computer, holding his hands to his head, panting heavily and looking focused as if they had discovered the fabled Blowfish.

"Hey, uh, Mandark?" Otto called over, with a sense of urgency. "You've gotta see this."

"In a minute, Mr. Osworth. Ben, as the time machine is nearing its completion. We are going to ask you to keep out of the fights as much as possible."

Mandark couldn't understand what came next. The beginning of the conversation had started out completely normal, Ben was understanding everything just fine, and even agreeing with him. Mandark considered that last event a rarity at most. But here it was back to square one. Ben had a look of shock on his face, one that wouldn't be too mistakable from betrayal. "W-what? No way, man! You want to keep your last line of defense away from the action?" Ben asked in a horrified surprise. This was no way to respond to heroes, he thought. He looked to Otto, the guy who supported him last. "Otto, help me out, buddy?!" But Otto was too engrossed in his work, unable to pay attention to Ben. While Ben could have argued with Mandark, the latter ultimately did have authority over his missions, so there wouldn't be a point in arguing.

"For the record, Ben, you are not our last line of defense, you are a second chance. If you were to be fatally wounded, as you and your KND squad were close to being today, our mission as well as yours would be jeopardized." Mandark explained. "In dire times where we barely have enough with us to treat human wounds, endangerment to your survival is a risk not worth taking."

"So..." Ben tried to think. He didn't know what to do. In his mind, he knew Mandark was right, but...at what cost?

He asked the only question that could form at his lips. "...what else can I do?"

Mandark's eyes darted away from Ben's face, presumably to think. It wasn't like Ben could tell anyhow, what with those glasses obscuring them. The only indication that Mandark was thinking was a small and quick shift in rotation, that was all. Once he came up with a solution, he spoke, "So far, the fusion activity in Genius Grove is at a low point. You may go there, if you'd like." he suggested, turning his back just as quickly as he darted his eyes. Mandark was too much in the moment to notice that Ben stood there, his trepidation having turned into anxiety, dumbfounded by his self-purported inability to help everyone here. The adolescent inventor couldn't comprehend why Ben would feel that way. He's getting a chance to save countless others just by sitting in a pressurized time-capsule. Why mourn over a lost cause?

Whatever the reason, it didn't bother or interest Mandark enough. Not enough as whatever Otto was doing where he had attempted to get his attention, to which Mandark actively paced himself towards.

"Good, you're here." Otto greeted him as he was approaching. But the matter was so important that Otto couldn't afford a second away from the screen, refocusing his attention back there. He seemed really excited, much more than usual. "Okay, Plumber Charles, I need you to throw the soda can into the anomaly. Report back your findings."

* * *

**ELSEWHERE - PEACH CREEK ESTATES**

It was safe to say that Plumber Charles, in his 30 years of employment, had seen some crazy things in his life.

Being a member of a universe-spanning interplanetary and galactic security organization, this was practically a part of the job description. So, what with holding legitimate knowledge of aliens existing before most of the world came to find out later, over-excessive kiddie-clubs and child geniuses and mutant toddlers weren't _that_ intriguing. The giant planet in the sky belonging to a race of ravenous parasites that have never been documented or recorded in Plumber history? Maybe that was a stretch, but seeking new life and new civilizations was one of the major points of being a Plumber.

But this?

This swirling, translucent, aquamarine vortex that had just appeared at random on a sidewalk? Where the soda can he had tossed away into the vortex didn't even go through it? The fact that this thing had been completely dormant for the last _hour_ and gave off some very strange readings?

Maybe this was where he should have drawn a line in the sand.

Because he had _no_ idea what this was.

He had made sure to do what any sensible Plumber would do: extrapolate data, assess evidence, and come to a conclusion. But these kinds of readings were uncharted territory for someone like him. Ultimately, he had to call in to Earth's resistance for reporting this, and he was lucky enough to have gotten ahold of Mandark's Laboratory, at least so he could get some sense of what was even happening here. Charles kept staring at the soda can, still not going through the vortex, and still no response from the other side. He had grown impatient in waiting for something to be said by someone, be it Mandark or this Otto fellow, and so he felt extremely relieved when said transmission finally did come through.

_"So? Did it go through the vortex?"_

"Uh...no...the subject is...lying on the floor, refusing to physically interact with the anomaly in any way." he replied. "But...I fail to understand why. I remember there being a mailbox here before this thing just showed up. Where'd it go?"

 _"It may be a matter of spacial mechanisms. Two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time. Whatever this is...it must have deconstructed the mailbox on the subatomic level, hence it's disappearance."_ Mandark explained, making his presence known. But there was a great sense of confusion in his voice. Not even he could completely comprehend what this vortex could be. He made the logical decision to find out himself. _"Send me some of the data you are receiving off this...anomaly."_

"Of course." Charles responded. He linked his NanoCom to his spectrometer, receiving the data byte by byte, and quickly sent it to Mandark.

 _"Right, while you guys are doing that,"_ Otto began, _"I gotta go. Time machine still needs some finishing touches."_

Over on the other side, Charles could hear what sounded like a few beeps of computer, underscored with rapid typing that almost resembled a rhythm. There was more typing and beeping, the sound of Otto's footsteps forcing Charlie to wait for a response. Amongst the rest of that, he heard another set of footsteps, the unforgettable and obnoxious armored clanking of each boot signified the presence of a random KND member. He didn't care for that as much as he looked back over into the vortex, its aquamarine hue shined and faded constantly, further plaguing Charles in his confusion. That conclusion came resolved, though, as Mandark finally spoke after two minutes of silence.

_"As I suspected. It would appear that the vortex is incapable of transporting solid matter, but...maybe..."_

"Maybe what, Mandark?"

 _"Analyzing further into this data, I may have come across what this might be. Our experiments with the tachyon particles seemed to have been a bit too ambitious. Based on the radiation levels your spectrometer was able to collect, and compared to the readings off of Larry 3000, they are one and the same. What you're seeing is possibly the result of a systematic error, caused by an improbable expansion of the tachyon particle wavelength."_ Mandark explained, and it was clear from the yawns on the other line that it was boring Otto and the KND operative next to him, _"This side affect appears to have created a...tachyonic antitelephone."_

"A tachyonic antitelephone? But I thought that was a theory!" Charles tried to argue, recognizing that jargon almost immediately.

"Time travel with organic subjects has been proven possible yet you question something much more basic such as sending information back in time?"

"I wouldn't call it basic, but-"

"Heyheyhey!" the KND operative interrupted the two. "You two may've gone ta college, but I haven't. Can someone tell me what you nerds are going on about?"

Charles couldn't comprehend how or why this kid suddenly got involved with the conversation. Usually, kids would be more inclined to turn away from math, right?

"It's a complicated concept, son." said Charles, "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Duh!"

Mandark took a deep breath, and readied an explanation. Charles couldn't help but break a sigh. This was college-level quantum mechanics that was being discussed, and he couldn't imagine how this kid would interpret it. _"There exists a theory in particle physics referred to as 'Tolman's Paradox', originally based on a thought experiment conceived by Einstein in 1907, which hypothesized a means to send one-way messages back in time. Einstein and Tolman suggested that when two streams of particles were to be aligned with each other, and when these particles were to be vibrated at a higher frequency and moved at a relative velocity faster than that of light, they break something called the superluminal barrier, and such phenomenon could potentially align or fold two areas in space-time, crudely resembling a method of time travel._ _Once this superluminal barrier is broken, all physical and existing matter is reorganized and converted to pure energy and information,_ _and the superluminal motions of matter would be so fast that they would be signaled before they are actually put in motion. It would result in a paradox of causality where the information would be interpreted before the transmission, having moved and adjusted to an earlier timeframe with a different frequency. One of the particles in question are tachyons, being the particles that can change directions due to their unstable nature. It's due to that nature that their mass constantly shifts, creating singularities within space-time, and allowing direct access to the other point in time."_ Mandark remained on-topic, but Charles could hear panting, as if this was some sort of ramble, or if it was from exhaustion. He couldn't tell if this was from Mandark or the KND operative. _"Now, in order for the information to actually transcend across the time-stream, Tolman's Paradox suggests the application of an Anti-Lorentz transformation. This would allow for the information being transmitted across two timeframes, with our side moving theoretically being inertial, while the other side would be moving at a non-inertial acceleration. The tachyons interact with the other stream of particles, vibrating at a higher frequency in order to break the superluminal barrier, and transmits their collective radiation to the other side, where it could be interpreted as information or, as we could use it for, a message across time."_

Charles attempted to offer his own expertise in the matter. Though, it wasn't much, after all it felt like only yesterday when he was on security duty in negotiations with the To'kustar race...and a lifetime ago when his college professor had only _touched_ on this little subject. "Boiled down, it's like a telegraph through time, just like a phone...only not going forward, but rather backward. The initial issue with the experiment was the lack of knowledge regarding the existence of tachyon radiation or the particle on its own for that matter. Without any recorded condensation of the particles, and the fact that their mass and frequency fluctuates constantly, scientists wouldn't have been to...well, find out if they existed or not. But...now we know."

 _"So, have you completely comprehended the science we just wasted time lecturing to you?"_ Mandark asked the KND agent demeaningly, but unlike earlier Charles could easily tell who was more overwhelmed. On the other side, the KND agent had attempted to take all of that in one word at a time, and truth be told, it was nauseating.

_"Do you need medical attention?"_

_"Nope. Naw, I'm fine, I'm just...wrapping my head around that."_ he said. _"Just-hold on. I...I...wait a minute."_

 _"What?"_ Mandark asked beligerently. Charles had to agree, though. These dramatics were just wasting time.

But the KND operative didn't intend for that. For in actuality, he had finally understood everything.

_"So...it's Steins;Gate."_

...come again?

"Gesundheit." Charles responded, missing the operative's "point" entirely. He wasn't sure if his radio was picking up static, but he could have sworn he heard a loud slap, like the kind after a facepalm. But it's not like he would immediately know what a Steins;Gate is. How would he? He was in space for most of his adult life.

_"What? N-no, Steins;Gate! That anime about sending e-mails and texts back in time? None of you have seen it?"_

_"Number 7345, I was a military contractor who used to run a highly advanced, state-of-the-art technological empire in a partnership with another highly advanced, state-of-the-art technological empire. I do not believe that could constitute any time for me to watch anime."_

"I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with this...AOH-NI-MÉAGH."

Charles could hear the operative slam his head into a control panel, probably in frustration. It didn't take long for him to recover and continue, though. _"My point is, we're sending messages across time, right? It was pretty easy on that show, so how hard could it be here? We'd just need a microwave, some chicken nuggets-"_

 _"As me and Mr. Charles have already pointed out, understanding the concepts and limitations of Tolman's paradox, subsequently in order to manipulate a tachyonic antitelephone, is a task that would be extensively challenging, even for someone as myself."_ Mandark argued.

_"Well, in fairness, you have to have a high IQ to understand Steins;Gate-"_

_"Subordinate, what did I have to tell you about making jokes?"_

_"R-Right, sorry dude…"_

_"Furthermore, Number 7345, if you dare to insult my intelligence one more time, I will not hesitate to throw you straight into the monitor here, so you can be reunited with your pathetic anime."_

_"You can do that?"_ 7345 asked with glee.

"Okay, back on topic." Charles said, "Mandark, what we need to do right now is follow Plumber protocol. I'll round up more of my colleagues; see if we can extrapolate more data, but until then, we're going to need a larger span of time to analyze these vortexes."

 _"And unfortunately for your Plumbers, Mr. Charles, we do not have the spans of time you are implying. Just yesterday, whatever remained of the Cleveland suburban area, dubbed by the Kids Next Door as "Candy Cove", has now been submerged in fusion matter. As of today, Fusion Number Two came to assault the Sector V treehouse once more, nearly succeeding were it not for a few fusion fighters. Lastly, the islands have been drifting further apart, leaving aerial support and cargo transports more vulnerable to fusion attacks."_ Charles could practically feel Mandark's argument come to life, especially considering that the portal was considerably to the sea of fusion matter, a grim reminder of the human race's priorities at that point. _"If there was more time on our hands, you would certainly be granted it. But with something far worse on the horizon, I doubt we can supply you with such an accommodation. Keep your data-stream updated, and continue sending me those updates. I shall see how I can adjust my algorithm accordingly."_

"Well, you have to give us _some_ sense of scale. I mean, we don't even-" Charles had to pause there. Did he say 'adjust'? "Hold on. What do you mean by 'adjust'? Have you...have you actually been typing that entire thing out this whole time?"

_"You seem surprised, Mr. Charles."_

"As in, it's been completed? You worked on it even through our little physics lesson with the kid over there?"

_"Yes. Is there a problem?"_

"A fully articulated, and accurate algorithm for sending - how did the kid put it - emails back into the past, all within the span of the last 5 minutes?"

From that, Mandark remained silent, clearly demonstrating his ingenuity. Charles, on the other hand, remained flabbergasted. He didn't have anything else to say, mainly because he couldn't have known what to say, and instead he sighed in disbelief and defeat. Dealing with militant kids and boy-geniuses was definitely not part of the job description. He tried moving past that, having been reminded enough that Mandark was superior to him in knowledge in quite possibly every way...except intergalactic politics. At least he could keep that title. "So...what does it do? How does it work?" he asked through his commlink. He needed something to distract him from his shame.

 _"The spectrometer has been reprogrammed with a cypher that can be interpreted through tachyon fluctuations, coupled with a series of fluctuating beta-rays_ _. I will find a way to re-engineer our accident to purposefully send different frequencies of radiation out the other end. When we send these messages, the spectrometer can calibrate them properly in order for the message to be properly translated."_

In the background, Charles heard a quiet beep, possibly from one of those NanoComs that everybody was using. _"'Kay, I gotta go. Fusion Spawns spotted by Hero's Square."_ 7345 announced, sounding like he was in a hurry. With him out of earshot, Mandark and Charles continued their discussion. Finally without the need to school those in ignorance, they refocused themselves to discussing the more glaring issues of this idea.

"Mandark, now that I have your undivided attention, why can't this thing function as a time-portal for organic material?"

_"It all comes down to the frequency and wavelength of these antitelephones. The time-slot must be so miniscule and the wavelength must be so small that only smaller elements such as particles can traverse between each linear frame. The wavelength isn't large enough to sustain large amplitudes from what it's transmitting, thus it can't sustain something any larger than the width of a pixel."_

"And as for the mailbox versus the soda can?"

 _"Most likely an explosion of energy released by the singularity. It swallowed whatever it could take before the wavelength minimized itself."_ Mandark explained. _"But that remains unimportant. I ought to inform you that the method of calibration will be in a very specifc way, so as to directly address who we need to address."_

"You think he'll be able to figure it out?"

_"He must. It's a pattern that like-minded scientists usually are able to recognize quickly."_

"Like-minded? I thought you two didn't do anything together."

 _"That is irrelevant and besides the point, if Dexter is as smart as he claims to be compared to me, then he should be able to understand these codes. This form of code can be interpreted with his technology just as well as mine, but it will require precision from our end. However, based on our supply of tachyons from Larry 3000, we will only have_ three _chances to get a message to him, but each shot cannot be precisely calibrated to just appear in front of Dexter's lab, so we can only hope that the corresponding vortex appears to those with capable hands."_

* * *

 **THE PAST:** **MAY 25 - 2014 - MASSACHUSETTS PARK, SIYENN CITY - CALIFORNIA**

"Dude, Rigby, remember to hold onto the sack, we can't let the dirt spill."

"God, dude, I'm workin' on it, get off my case!"

As always, it was a sunny day in the Park. Trees were moving with the wind, birds chirping everywhere, it was all the standard case.

That's why it was _so boring_.

These two guys looked like they got that. The tall blue jay and the dark dirty raccoon had kept talking as they were loading Park-sanctioned trees onto their golf-cart.

"No way, dude. You annihilated the bathroom sink yesterday. Skips had to block you from plumbing duties forever, _and_ he took a dive outta your paycheck."

"Dude, Mordecai, I'm fine! Remember how I'm the one who fixed that crack in the fountain?!"

"Yeah, sure, Rigby. Your computer college must be very proud."

"I'm serious du-HEY!"

In response to this insult, Rigby _tried_ to punch Mordecai. Emphasis on _tried_. He wasn't even sure if Mordecai felt anything. As they were loading more of the trees onto their cart, they continued their dreary conversation, desperate for any form of communication.

"So dude, d'you hear about the drop?"

"Drop? What drop?"

"Dude, you've gotta have heard 'bout the drop!"

" _I don't know what the frigg_ _ing_ _drop is_!"

"Dude, how do you not know what the drop is?" Mordecai reacted with sarcasm. "Well, you know that alien hero dude from Bellwood? And you know how those Powerpuff Girls had to deal with some villains or something in that city? Yeah, they released this mini-statistic about the lack of the alien sightings. Those things haven't shown up for the past 3 days or something."

"Oh...aww, that sucks!" Rigby exclaimed as he wiped the dirt from the sacks on his fur off. "Even the one with the four arms?"

"Yeah, dude, even the one with the four arms. They're kinda the same person."

Rigby was mildly startled by that. It didn't last long though. "Dude, I'd totally know what to do if I had four arms." Rigby muttered offhandedly with mischief.

"It don't matter how many arms you have, I'd still beat your ass in Punchies anyhow. Or, y'know, get a higher weekly paycheck than you."

"Still though, I did manage to fix a crack on the fountain! That's gotta mean _something_ , right?"

"Assuming anybody was going to notice that crack."

"You kiddin' me, dude? The crack was _huge_! I had to pull out the rubber cement, and rubber cement sucks! Hell, you could actually see-" Rigby stopped in the middle of his words, failing to let more bounce off his tongue.

Mordecai took notice, and immediately assumed the usual. "What? Ya now realizing that your job was pointless?"

"Uh...Mordecai?"

"What, dude? Did you hear anythin-" Mordecai would have mocked his friend's inability to pay attention, but even he found himself at a loss for words as his attention focused on the occurrence in front of him. The job Rigby recalled that he continuously described actually preceded the tree-job. Better yet, the fountain was in close proximity to where they needed to pick out the trees, so it wasn't too hard or long for them to stretch the job. They had good sight of the fountain, close enough to make out most of its features.

Only...there weren't any features to make out. In fact...there was nothing to make out...

The damn fountain was just...gone!

And in it's place, a somewhat visible aquamarine vortex, pulling the ground beneath it down. What was also visible to the two Park-keepers was that it was _glowing_.

Glowing was never a good sign, especially in the Park. Mordecai and Rigby were, put plainly, petrified.

"Benson's gonna kill us..."

"We could always blame it on the portal..."

Mordecai could only exchange dumbfounded looks with Rigby. No ideas came to his mind, except...

"We gotta call in some help..."

* * *

**SECTOR V TREEHOUSE - MAIN QUARTERS**

Number Five on the couch of the treehouse, reading Number Four's telegram closely in the main living and meeting quarters. One thing she was annoyed at with this whole telegram system was the constant repetition of 'stop' she had to keep reading in place of periods (y'know, the more advanced grammar)! It certainly didn't help the pace of her reading either, especially because she knew that Number Two was skating on thin ice, so whatever was so urgent to send a telegram to her had to be read fast.

Once she found her way through the maze of 'stops', she tried reading out the message as clearly as possible:

 _"Nmberu Fevi, I clla u ot letu know thta 2 and hte KND is ni deep wetar rite nwo stop_ ("hmmg...") _c_ _as Nmbreu 1 scwrd m' ovre with thta tnhig he wrote in hte bkoo of KND buot Nncoamos stop_ ("hggrr!") _Anthyign u cna d?o stop_ ("nnyyaarggh!") _"_

Truly, _Number_ _Four was an adapt learner in morse code_.

Five tossed Four's poor attempt at proving he was some kind of genius aside to the other side of the couch and pinched her nosebridge trying to figure out what to do. Number One actually signed that book with those ideas around her. It was something that Dexter, and the rest of the KND officials and their sector had universally agreed upon. This was a matter of risking the entirety of the Kids Next Door's secrecy for the sake of rebooting their security and communication systems. Well for one, maybe then they wouldn't have to _use friggin' telegrams_! But on the other hand, opening up a NanoCom channel would be a public matter, exposing an organization that has remained secret for half a century, alerting millions upon billions of adults and parents to the presence of technologically advanced kids.

There was a time Number Five recalled when on a mission to fight her sister. Her sister, in her full B.R.A had said to her something that had stuck in her head, that Five was hard-pressed to realize that it was the truth. Cree had told her that 'things changed' when she 'got older'. Cree had always wanted for Five to 'grow up' and stop playing around.

Now, in her loyal KND mind, that was a god-awful idea. Changing because you would get older? Changing to have the world better understand you? In terms of their line of work, adults have never stopped suppressing kids, and kids just had to accept that. Five couldn't understand when such a time like would come.

But maybe...it _was_ that time.

Maybe it _was_ that time for change, for the KND to...well, come out and come to terms with the world around them. As she began to consider it, it didn't seem like such a bad idea compared to how it was 5 or 7 years ago. In a world where a _kid_ runs the world's largest and most efficient technology corporation, in a world where the five most notable superheroes in the world were three teenage girls (who actually started their careers as heroes when they were still in kindergarten as _kids_ ) and two teenage _kids_ , and in a world where the technology has become so advanced as to make it near impossible to hide from the world like the way they have, maybe it _was_ time to open the world up to the existence of the KND after all.

Cree had told her that 'things changed' when she 'got older'. What Number Five felt she failed to understand from that was that the world also got older. The world also changed. With so many head figures being kids, would it be that far of a stretch for the world to believe and accept in a secret organization comprised entirely of kids? They also had the benefit of many KND soldiers being teenagers. Thanks to the peace treaty with the teens, the KND extended the decommissioning age from 13 to 18. As teenagers, the Kids Next Door that once fought against adult tyranny for the sake of freedom and having greater and more involved opinions in the world could now _get_ what they wanted. They could _get_ their autonomy. They could actually inspire and lead change.

Five kept that in the back of her head for now, because as she thought more about it, a temporary public exposure wouldn't hurt that much. They'd be exposed for 20 minutes tops, while the rest of the world would be immersed in watching cat videos and funny videos of people nearly dying. That would've been enough time to contact or repair whatever they needed to repair, without much exposure to the world. She could guess that the most harm it would do is spark a few conspiracy blog posts.

But there in laid the problem, as Five couldn't accurately predict the actions of millions upon billions of adults across the globe. What if the government _would_ be listening in? What if, say, Providence or SECT got to know of their operations, and attempted to terminate them? It wasn't a risk worth taking, especially in light of the moronic things the government has done in the past, like trying to experiment on sheep for some kind of death ray. Providence was another animal altogether, what with their militaristic attitude towards things out of the ordinary, and if they use guns to try to calm down out-of-control mutated humans (Numbuh Five don' like 'hat one bit, she thought), one could only imagine what they would do to an organization of hyper-intelligent children.

But, then again...the NanoComs could set up a large communication base, and hold several people online at once, and Dexlabs was always known for having absurd communication ranges, so an idea like this would have come in handy. Furthermore, the fact that the NanoComs are a temporary solutions was the biggest argument for eventually using them. It seemed like the best possible solution.

Cree had told her that 'things changed' when she 'got older'. Number Five could only hope now that this change _was_ in fact for the better.

She decided to call _him_ on her personal NanoCom, maybe just to tick him off and to get her point across. Unsurprisingly, her NanoCom actually _worked_.

Finally, Number Five thought, something that doesn't involve fake grammar and 30 minute waiting times!

"Hey there. You better hope you've been listenin' in, 'cause Numbuh Five got some choice words for ya." she began, waiting for him to finish. "No, we don' care that's in the KND book. You wrote it in there, and now it shot us in the foot."

Five then found herself overwhelmed with a barrage of shouts from the other end of the line. Typical of him to get angry over something so minuscule of a change.

"Listen, _Nigel_. The kiddie-gloves are off. Numbuh Five is gettin' a liddle tired of secrecy when it comes to a giant hole in KND security! If 1776 is actually considering this idea, then your adamance against the change will only further justify Two's solution! Right now, no one wants to look like the traitor, and either you grant _temporary_ access to a NanoCom channel, or the KND's security system is completely compromised 'cause o' you!" Five said; trying to knock some sense into him, she ended their talk with one final say. "So fly up to Moon Base, or else everybody in the KND'll come after you!"

Five hoped that she managed to knock _some_ sense, _any_ sense into him. She did what she could. At this point, whatever happened to Two was out of her hands, whether she liked that or not.

* * *

**SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

[They said that: *playing back transcript of customer support call-12342425894*] Computress dictated, preparing the speech in her processor, ["Hey dudes, is this Dexlabs customer support er something? Whatever. There's this weird-looking portal thing that just...kinda...appeared out of nowhere. It kinda showed up in place of our fountain - PLEASE WE NEED OUR FOUNTAIN BAC- Rigby, shut up. So...we actually don't know who to call, so...y'know"; *end transmission*]

Bubbles found herself holding back laughter. A sarcastic but stoic computer saying multiple slang words and phrases was always funny to her. She never knew why. While she was thinking about that, her sisters and Dexter were listening intently.

Dexter pondered intently. Whatever this anomaly was, it had just appeared out of nowhere to swallow a fountain, and nothing more. "Well, to begin with, the disappearance of the fountain may be a matter of spacial mechanisms. As usual, two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time. Whatever this is...it must have deconstructed the mailbox on the subatomic level, hence it's disappearance." he suggested. "However, the lack of any residue of the fountain, like say from its bust, its material, defies the logic of a normal vortex...Computress, scan for any apparent electromagnetic radiation or occurrences within a 220 mile radius."

[Scanning now] said Computress. The Utonium family had their jaws dropped with such a stoic reveal of information. _220 miles_?! Why on earth would Dexter even have a spectrometer with a detection radius that large?! [Aside from one outlier of a man who charged his NanoCom with a potato, I have detected: low-level fluctuations of unknown form of radiation, appearing from an unknown medium - energy output of radiation is at 13.2 Gy, with an uncertainty of 11.43]

That was a surprisingly large uncertainty. How much was this anomaly fluctuating?

"11.43...Computress, do you have any defined point of origin for this radiation?"

[Negative] she said, but she followed it up with a much greater piece of help. [Analysis: energy output and rate of energy transfer could suggest a stream of continuous radiation flowing from an undefined medium, where there is an equal amount of distribution on each frame; Conclusion: anomaly is of = extradimensional origin; Rebuttal: without any defined medium, it may not be transcending across space; Evaluation: anomaly is resulted from = quantum causality]

"Hmm..." Dexter murmured; the girls nor the professor were able to make out many of the words he just said. While the idea of a quantum causality got them thinking, for Dexter, he was already done. The boy genius came to a conclusion practically faster than a speeding bullet (proportionately, of course), while the Professor and the girls, the latter of whom could actually travel faster than a speeding bullet were stumped. They did not like that notion, but it was their minds versus his. A battle not worth fighting. "We may have stumbled upon a...tachyonic antitelephone."

"A tachyonic antitelephone? But I believed something like that was just a theory!" Professor Utonium tried to argue, recognizing that jargon almost immediately.

"Time travel with organic subjects, with the correct chrono-keys in place, may have been proven possible yet you question something much more basic such as sending _information_ back in time?"

"R-right, how silly of me," the Professor realized.

"Excuse me," Buttercup asked, "some of us haven't taken particle physics yet. Shut up, Blossom." she proactively said just as her sister was about to open her mouth and let her knowledge flow. Buttercup's rejection of her knowledge turned her smile of pride right upside down. "So could either of you nerds explain to me what the hell a tachyonic antitelephone is?"

"Well, Buttercup," the Professor began, "my knowledge of the theory is a little foggy...but basically there's a theory in particle physics called Tolma-"

"No time to explain this, Professor. It is simply a portal that sends information across space-time." Dexter rushed in to sit at his chair facing the computer, interrupting the Professor before he could even get into the explanation proper. "I am deploying a Sky Drone near that park towards the anomaly right now. It will be able to record data on the phenomenon as we speak."

When all around him gave the boy genius funny looks, he had to come clean on this idea. "It was an idea shared with Mandark. If he can do his own research on Imaginary Energy at Foster's Home with drones of his own, then I can certainly do similar exploits myself."

"Wait, what's he doing at Foster's Home?"

"Shh, Bubbles!"

With the clicks of a keyboard and a few extra buttons, an image of the drone's view of the Park began to appear as the camera slowly moved higher into the air. It seemed that Dexter had already set up a station for the drone around the Park, and said drone was already a minute away from the site. Compared to Dexlabs apparently having a really large spectrometer for no apparent reason, drones surrounding several locations across the state was something that they didn't have that much of a hard time believing.

As the drone began to hover around the original site of the fountain, with those two workers who had made the call still in view. The drone sent down a few wires and devices to begin the data collection.

Usually this process would take about 15-20 minutes to collect, usually due to the machine examining every microbe within the vicinity for any form of radiation or anomaly. So it was a little unexpected when the drone began to download data _almost immediately_.

But it didn't matter much to Dexter. It just meant he could get to work much quicker. But amongst the data he was already receiving, a few things caught his eye.

"That's strange...I'm detecting two different forms of radiation emanating from the vortex...one of which is...Einstein's Ghost!" Dexter kept muttering rather than speak in full sentences, seemingly figuring it out on his own. "And then there's this other stream of... _wait a moment_..."

"What? What is it?" The Professor asked.

"I know this cypher... _I know this cypher_." Dexter realized, the second repetition voicing his idea much louder. "This is a coded cypher that I use to communicate information. There exists only one other person who knows this cypher because he and I crafted it together! _Mandark!_ "

As if at the very mention of the name, Blossom could have sworn she heard a thunderclap or a strike of lightning outside. Whatever it was, it made her flinch at the sudden sound of it.

"Cypher? What cypher are you talking about? These are all - okay, let me see," the Professor said, confused at Dexter's ramblings, leaning in close to see what areas he was referring to. He read through it as best as he could, some of it he failed to understand, but he couldn't see any pattern that Dexter was seeing. "Okay, I'm not really seeing any cypher that you're talking about. All I'm seeing is data on what's essentially stray matter."

"It is and never was meant to be stray. Check this area, and report to me if you can see a pattern." Dexter commanded, in the attempt to prove himself right. The Professor did look into it, and began to see what Dexter was referring to, although with a degree of skepticism.

"Okay...well, all of that could be just a coinc-" Even before the Professor could finish that word, Dexter gave him a murderous glance. He _really_ did not like that word. "Fine, fine. Maybe you do have a fair point." the Professor said, taking back the dreaded C-word.

"So. Does Mandark usually send you messages via wormhole?" Buttercup sarcastically asked.

Dexter cringed at the improper jargon the green Powerpuff Girl had just used. "It is clearly a vortex, not a wormhole. And no, Mandark would not do something so stupid as sending me encrypted messages via vortex when he can simply walk across the street." That was true, as Mandark Industries' headquarters were directly parallel to that of Dexlabs' Tech Square Headquarters. It's not like he would waste time cutting a hole in the fabric of reality just for the purpose of talking. "Furthermore, if these readings I am receiving from the drone are correct..." He maximized the frame of the image, with its analysis of the wormhole displayed on the side. The two park workers were still on the drone's camera, this time being yelled at by a talking gumball machine. Anyway, the data analysis displayed a highlight of two separate streams of some kind, something so small that was travelling out of the portal as if through a tube. Dexter had his attention pointed towards the bottom left corner of his humungous screen, where it focused on a specific stream it highlighted stream; the analysis of that particular stream provided a mockup model of one of the particles this stream was comprised of. Blossom and the Professor looked as confused as Dexter when the rendering was sized up to fit the larger screen. All three of them having extensive knowledge in science (and apparently particle physics), the structure of the mockup confused the hell out of them. These were particles that were constantly shifting its state of mass, producing fluctuating energy levels that were never consistent, and from the way the render depicted it they kept...disappearing, or moving out of one plane of sight to the next. That _really_ shouldn't be happening, thought the oldest Powerpuff and the Professor, it was already engrained in their minds that there were certain phases and laws particles could follow. These things were essentially breaking all of them.

But Dexter remained unfazed, and continued explaining. "The data around this area presents a 50% energy output, along with evidence of a point of origin thanks to the radiation these unknown particles are emitting, where they are increasing and decreasing in wavelength disproportionately and bizarrely to their size or the original area of the vortex. This conclusively makes it clear that whatever this is is something not dealt with in practical scientific research. The fact that there is a 50% output with a defined medium indicates that said medium could have taken place from a point further back in spacetime, what with the presence of a vortex to provide us with a Lorentz transformation of immeasurable magnitude that all point to a single cause for the vortex: the unidentified particles, presented as a form of radiation yet to be discovered by man, and yet it can travel through time."

The Professor almost immediately came to figure out what sort of conclusion Dexter was leading towards. "Tachyon particles...again, I believed those to be theoretical, so we can confirm that-"

"Time travel is once again at play here," Dexter realized, "though on a much smaller scale, and with a cypher meant specifically for me."

"Okay, let's just assume that none of us have ever created polyalphabetic cyphers before and haven't come into contact with a future version of Simon Astronomonov." Blossom said to Dexter. "Could you explain to us how you're interpreting matter through a Lorentz transformation into words and sentences?"

"Focus on the yellow highlighted area. Do you see how these specific particles are sent through repeatedly and at a concurrent rate of approximately 2.4 centiseconds? Mandark and I created a cypher based on the transformation of energy and the approximate timings of its reverberations to determine each letter in the alphabet." Dexter continued explaining, not caring whether or not he made sense or not. As he was explaining, he opened a program that began typing code rapid fast, as if he was trying to build a program of some sort. "Some patterns form basic wordings and conjunctions, which helps determine the overall sentence structure of the phrase, like how the conversion of every 7 hydrogen protons per centisecond equates to a simple greeting such as 'Hello'. It's a system we had designed to be unique, so that we could instantly recognize it should we have to."

With that information, the understanding came to Blossom naturally, and she had to admit that it was unique. The only question that she had in all of this was where or how did Dexter and Mandark even test this thing in the first place. Wouldn't they have needed some apparatus to actually test this conversion of energy or particles?

Another question to be locked away in the vault that was Dexter's mind, she supposed.

Bubbles, who remained mostly quiet through this entire explanation, had her own question in mind. "So, should we get Mandark? Like, our Mandark? Maybe he can come and help out with your decoding?"

"Y-n-no!" Dexter shouted to Bubbles. "He must not know about this. Mandark would most likely collapse in shock, or worse mistake it as me sharing the cypher with someone else. He usually can delve into unannounced moments of drama. Right now, I need to determine the connection between Future-Mandark and the missing test subject."

"Okay...can I-" Bubbles began, but after a stern look from Blossom and the Professor, she slid off her sentence, and slid back behind Dexter's chair.

"We may not need him anyway. All I need to do is simply re-interpret the data on my own with the program I have already set up..." Dexter exposited, keeping his solving of the problem to himself. The program's response came as fast as the initial data. "There we go. We have the message in English."

"What does it say?"

"It reads out: "Dear inferior Dexter, stay in touch, collect the tachyon particles, sending...blueprints."" Dexter was less focused on that intellectual insult and more confused by Mandark's broken message. What did he even mean by these random messages? And more importantly...

"Blueprints for what?"

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE**

"Okay, Plumber Charles, now that you have successfully added the red wire, you need to attach the blue wire juxtaposing the red wire." Mandark spoke into the shortwave transmission. In order to not spend so much time looking for more portals, Mandark came up with a modification to the Plumber tools that could link the other side of the vortex to whatever antitelephone they ended up using. There was also a vortex found around Hero's Square right there in Sector V, so Mandark was looking to connect the Peach Creek vortex to Sector V's, so as to make his job much easier.

"Done."

"Excellent. Wait for a few minutes, and it should be sending the information properly. Pleasure doing business with you." Mandark added before Charles disconnected the call. Otto, who had been working non-stop behind him, decided to ask what exactly Mandark was planning.

"So, if I could ask, what're we planning to send them?" Otto asked Mandark.

"A new plan. The tachyons from Larry 3000 are volatile in their nature. In order to save time on resources and technology, I'm proposing that they collect samples of the tachyon particles from their side of the antitelephone, and reconfigure their time machine to synchronize with ours. Furthermore, we will provide them with blueprints for this machine, decreasing whatever time would be wasted on making their own version from scratch."

"So this idea will essentially will link the two machines together..." Otto pondered, "so it would be like a synchronization engine?"

"Precisely." Mandark confirmed, proudly, despite not knowing what a synchronization engine was and just assuming it was Time Squad technology.

"But what I don't get is why we aren't outright telling them about Ben or the Fusion War. We can warn them about what to do before it even happens, right?"

"Ben _will_ be mentioned, but such an idea to simply tell them about the war could be met with disbelief from the other side. It would cause more problems than good." Mandark reasoned. "Furthermore, the stability of these vortexes is very much uncertain. We have no true measure of how long they will last, so transferring the important information of sending Ben back to the past is priority number one."

Otto gave a small nod to show his understanding of things, and later shook his head in disbelief. "Y'know, we're breaking so many Time Squad rules right now...especially with the synchronization engine."

"Do tell." Mandark half-heartedly responded. Just as Otto took the question literally and was about to tell, Mandark shut him up. " **Don't** tell." he counteracted, contradicting himself in the process.

"Right, I've got this batch of info done, it'll probably work for the Sector V vortex." Otto said, offering Mandark the recorded sequence.

"Hmm, a bit inaccurate in grammar, but nothing major stands out." Mandark said, callously congratulating Otto for understanding the sequencing of his cypher. "I shall make sure to run it through once we get the second message sent."

"Which one is that gonna come through?"

"The same one by Peach Creek Estates."

"Got it." Otto understood. Computress was next to speak, but she had a bit of worry in her voice.

[Dr. Astronomonov, there appears to be a situation in the Pokey Oaks suburbs] Computress voiced, sounding worried in her own right. [Inquiry: Shall I send out a mission call?]

"Yes, Computress, just send a few KND troops to the scene. It's not like it's another Bad Max, so why make a fuss, correct?"

[Affirmative; further inquiry: shall you require Benjamin Tennyson on this mission?]

"No. I've sent him to Genius Grove, and he needs to stay there until the time machine is near completion. The time he'll have to spend there will be limited however, as Otto is very nearly completely finished with the interface." Mandark said. "Send a standard squad to investigate."

[Affirmative] Computress agreed, without much objection, before signing out.

* * *

**ELSEWHERE - GENIUS GROVE**

The Sky Monkey dropped Ben off at Genius Grove, leaving him completely unsure of what the hell he was even supposed to do.

He was so lost that he couldn't even think in long thoughts or sentences.

He looked around. There was dead grass. There was a house with a giant satellite dish on it. There was also a Nano station. Ben walked over slowly, still in shock by the utter rejection of his offerings in favor of playing it safe. He took out the fusion matter he had taken from Fusion Number Two, and loaded it into the imagination energy-powered machine.

Then, after a good 2 minutes, out came a new nano of Number Two. Yay.

Shame that the real Number Two himself wasn't in any condition to be around, and instead Ben got some chibi rip-off.

Joy.

Ben did what he had learned to do during his stay in the future, digitizing the Number Two nano and sending him to his NanoCom.

As he was turning away to wander around in Genius Grove aimlessly, he found an interesting site. Number Five was sitting against the wall of that giant house. Ben hadn't seen her for the last two days, ever since Two's hospitalization at Fuse's hands; it hadn't been easy for her, nor was it easy for anybody in coping with what had happened to Two, but she ultimately blamed herself for being caught up in another mission while Two had gotten the infection at Tech Square. Ben didn't believe that was the case at all, but it already was hard to convince her otherwise in her depressed state.

Ben slowly walked up to the girl hoping she'd at least move to tell him she was alive. "Number Five, hey...how're you holdin' up?"

"I'll be fine..." Five said drearily. She seemed less emotionally distraught than when he saw her last. Walking tearfully out of the treehouse as she attempted to process Two's less than healthy state. She pulled out her NanoCom, signaling Ben to come closer as she said, "Oh, I got somethin' to show ya."

Out of the device materialized a glowing yellow capsule, and inside it was a nano version of what looked like a pink-skinned kid, curled up in a fetal position and being completely immobile. Ben realized what he had just gotten was yet another nano.

"'Thought you should have this," Five said. "Back at the Junkyard, we ran into Fusion Eddy, and I collected some of his goop for an Eddy nano. You probably need it more than I do."

"Eddy as in Eddy SkipMcGee? From Peach Creek?" Ben questioned. "That kid and his friends kept T.P-ing my house on Halloween. But he's just a human kid, right? What good'll a nano of him do?"

"I know that this one should have something like a jump power or a healing factor. I dunno, some of the samples for the nanos had to be augmented to be any good for use." Five explained. "I made sure to encode it to your DNA signature. Only you can use them."

Ben hesitated on what to say as he departed the depressed legendary operative. The only words that could come out of his mouth were extremely cheesy to him. Once again, Ben found himself in ignorance regarding emotional support. "Thanks, Number Five...I'll...uh...make sure nothing happens to Two when I get back..."

"Promises, promises. You don't have to promise anything to a dead girl." Five responded depressingly. Ben tried to ignore Five's apparent death-wish, no matter how disturbing it was. "All that I care about is that once you get back, this whole future won't exist, and everyone at Sector V will be fine."

Ben nodded hesitantly, storing the Eddy nano in his NanoCom.

"See you soon, Five." Ben said as he began to turn away from her, attempting to move elsewhere, no matter how much it pained him to be so unhelpful.

"Remember to give Deedee a piece of my mind when you get back, Ben." Five said in as much moral support as she could. "Givin' one to her now ain't gonna do much good."

Ben didn't want anything of the sort. He'd rather just get back and - wait, did she say 'now'?

"Now? Wait," Ben realized, "Dexter's sister is alive?"

"Yeah, man." Five told him. "She's been all-holed up in her house since things got bad, and ever since word got round that Dex died, well..."

"Well what?"

"Well...some of the kids 'round here have asked to search the house for werewolves."

Ben's concern turned to blank understanding. Deedee had been crying, probably howling, and it was clear to him where this was coming from.

Devastation.

Panic.

Guilt.

All because she pressed a button, while the butterfly's wings did the rest.

"Where's her house again?" he asked with a bit more energy. Five was put off by his lack of anger and abundance of interest.

"She's right in here." Five answered, pointing with her thumb to the wall of the house behind her.

"So it's just Dexter's house."

"Yeah," Five confirmed, "dude, why would you care anyway? Is it for some revenge plot?"

Ben flinched again at that word. He didn't want any revenge or a piece of his mind. He just needed to see her.

"I just need to talk with her." Ben said, undeterred from his calm, surprising the heck out of Number Five for his apparent stoicism. But to her, Deedee was said to be incapable of recognizing mistakes, and her screw-up deprived them of a major factor in the war. To Number Five, Deedee was so frustrating that she couldn't see how someone _wouldn't_ be angry with her, no matter whatever sympathy they would show.

"Definitely a revenge plot."

* * *

 **THE PAST:** **MAY 25 - 2014 -** **SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

"Collect the tachyon particles?" the Professor questioned. "Whatever for?"

"There appears to be more to it than that, Professor." Dexter responded, monotone as always. "It would appear that future-Mandark has been sending us more information, such as the aforementioned blueprints. Right now, as per his instructions (no matter how suspicious they are), the tachyons are being transferred into secure vials, where they can be properly cared and stored for later use."

A lot of the words that the professor and Dexter were very scientific and all, but half of them weren't even in her vocabulary. Bubbles continued to wander around the laboratory, reminding herself not to touch anything that so much looked like a button, simply because it could have exploded in her face, literary. She looked around the lab to see if there was anything to do aside from listen to those two, seeing a group of scientists hurdled around one area, taking a break from their work.

"You guys think it's weird that he calls those three over to help with the time machine, and before those girls even do anything, there's some groundbreaking new development?" the girl with the half-moon glasses speculated. The other scientists chuckled, before getting up to get back to their jobs of salvaging the materials of the previous machine. The girl with the half-moon glasses just stayed for a little while longer.

Bubbles couldn't help but use this as a means to make conversation with the scientist. She hovered over quietly to where this girl was sitting, as Dexter was still waiting on the computer to give him results, and everyone else intently watched him, except for this scientist, still enjoying whatever break she had. Initially, Bubbles had a clear idea of how she could start the conversation, but unfortunately for her, she forgot about it altogether.

"So, what about his parents?" she asked the scientists, completely out of the blue and out of context.

The casual scientist looked up upon hearing Bubble's unprecedented inquiry. "Huh?"

Bubbles mentally smacked herself on the head. Of all the times when her social awkwardness had to show, it had to be here? "I-Oh, geez, I'm so sorry, I-I know that's a little rude of me to want to know and I won't do that ag-"

"Hey, hey, it's okay." the scientist kindly replied. "If I was to be perfectly honest, I think I'd go insane without any conversation here to keep me company."

"Yeah, I think I know the feeling," Bubbles concurred. "What was your name again?"

"Mary."

"Cool! Well, I'm-"

"No need for your introduction. Scientists do get to watch TV, y'know." Mary playfully joked, before realizing that joke to be a bit self-degrading, to which her chuckles turned sour fast and into quiet groans. "Um...so what about that question you had for me?"

"Nothing, really, just...it's been a while since me and my sisters had seen Dex, and...well, last time his relationship with his parents was a little weird. I felt bad for him, and then I just wanted to know if it improved...so...y'know..." Bubbles mentally smacked herself in the head again. If she kept this up, she'd just forget how to talk at all.

"Oh. He, uh…never mentions his parents much. I think they're still in Genius Grove, living out their lives, probably seeing if they can renovate Dexter's old lab into a pantry…I dunno."

"Hmm," Bubbles pondered, "it's weird, when we all first got to meet Dexter, he _really_ didn't want his parents knowing about his lab. But I guess now…"

"Yeah, 'cat let itself outta the bag." Mary recounted. "Apparently, Dexter's parents took it better than he expected. Then came the grade-skipping, then came college, then came…Dexlabs."

Bubbles could relate to what that was like. Having known the boy genius for a while, it came as no surprise that he had a fearful attitude towards new people or ideas. "Dexter's always been…paranoid about what other people's trust. You think the whole schtick with his parents changed anything?"

"If it did, he's pretty good at hiding it." Mary suggested. "Usually, he's so stoic you could mistake him for a Life-Model Decoy, but maybe he just likes to be focused that way, I dunno."

Just as Mary finished talking with Bubbles, a positive beeping sound came from Dexter's computer. In correspondence with that computer, Dexter looked just as excited, a _very major rarity_ _for someone like him_.

"Yeah, a secret side like that one..." Mary pointed out, "I think that's your cue to go..."

"Excellent! New cypher set received. Sending information to my application for decoding the cipher..." Dexter continued expositing his actions, while Bubbles flew over from Mary to observe closer, "which should manifest as clear English text...and..."

"Dang it, stop beatin' the bush, Dex!" irately scolded Buttercup, clearly observing this process for much longer than Bubbles. "Do you have it in English or not?!"

"Just wait...a-ha! We have a translation, a...quite lengthly translation." Rather than read it all out, Dexter read it to himself, later paraphrasing it. This first part brought a humungous feeling of relief. "Thank Einstein's Ghost! It would appear that Ben is in fact in their future, safe and sound!" Over by the repair site, Dexter could hear all of the scientists going from confused to completely shocked, most likely a rude wake-up call from the last two days of faithless work turned flat on its face.

"Ben? Is that the name of the kid you sent into the future?" Blossom asked.

"Y-yes..." Dexter said, responding with suspicion. He still didn't want the girls finding out that the aforementioned Ben was in fact Ben 10, as they would probably murder him upon finding out their recent workload increase to be because of him and Deedee. Dexter flinched at the thought of his mangled corpse as the result of three pissed off girls.

Blossom, being Blossom, did the exact opposite of what Dexter hoped she wouldn't do. "You never mentioned his last name. What was his last name again?"

"I...uh...um...Button...coyote? Yes, Buttoncoyote, Ben Buttoncoyote!" Dexter said, making it up on the spot and hoping that Blossom wouldn't see through his lie. He was a really awful liar, so it would be a miracle if she didn't get it, but the continued stare from the Powerpuff Girl implied otherwise.

But Dexter apparently _did_ have some luck. All Blossom said was a single "Oh", and then she just left it alone. Dexter felt yet another wave of relief. That was _way_ too close.

The boy genius attempted to move out of this conversation, and back to the message across time at hand. "Reading back through the message so far, they have detailed the specific adjustments needed for the time machine on our side. Some of these modifications they list involve separate machines altogether, one of which they are referring to a 'synchronization engine' where - w-where...Sweet Einstein's Ghost..."

"Dex, could you please be more open? You're going on too many tangents."

Dexter was so immersed in what this plan was detailing, he failed to notice that when he did open up, as Blossom had requested, he was speaking out loud, and with an unmistakable tone of excitement. "Magnificent! This idea they've crafted is a stroke of ingenuity! This future sounds incredible! A fine day for science indeed!"

Blossom swore in her head that if Dexter got any more pompous than he was right now, she'd throw up. Dexter turned around to see how much he had freaked the Powerpuff Girls out. They looked extremely scared, as if this was a rare attitude for him to be expressing. Dexter mentally scoffed at their surprise, he wasn't that monotone and emotionless, was he?

"Okay..." Blossom followed on from her little jab at Dexter, "not _that_ much open..."

"I apologize for that...excitement. I still like to take pleasure in these achievements." Dexter said, returning to his stoic attitude, and keeping everyone very much sane. "But this machine _is_ a fascinating idea. An engine that can use tachyon particles to open Lorentz transformations across time and space, simultaneously synchronizing two engines of the same variety in a two-way set up. Future-Mandark once again said that he will be relaying more information for as long as the vortexes remain open. The message appears to have also given us instructions for what we use the tachyon particles for. I shall look over them and get to work immediately."

"Should we look at it too?"

"No need, I can lay the groundwork, and my scientists and I will work on the rest." Dexter responded, clearly having already formulated a plan of action. Blossom didn't find that all very assuring. Dexter was always someone who wanted to do things himself. Employing all these scientists was probably a mandatory predicament for him, she thought. But that knowledge of Dexter's self didn't mix well with her desire to help others, especially him and the predicament he was in and trying to amend.

"Hey Dex, speaking of tachyons, why not just use those to maybe...siphon Ben back to us?" Buttercup suggested, breaking a very short silence between Dexter and Blossom. It didn't sound like an awful idea, but Dexter being Dexter, that was quickly proven to be false.

"Ironically we had tried that yesterday. But it proved impossible with our resources, both theoretically and realistically. This idea makes a great deal more sense and logic. Without the idea they are proposing, we would have no way of properly finding Ben in a future that has yet to happen. If we tried something so simple, we could pull out anything, from hair to toenails to an entire arm. So right now, if we are to deliver Ben safely back to the present, then we would most probably need him in one piece." To that logic, Buttercup could only shrug her shoulders and admit defeat. No one wanted a random arm just flopping on the floor.

"Okay, so were not gonna use the tachyons directly." Buttercup rhetorically asked. "Okay..."

"Could you send us a copy of your shopping list, then?" Blossom said out of the blue, hovering mid-air as if ready to go somewhere.

"Why so?"

Blossom rolled her eyes, keeping the positive grin on her face. She didn't care if Dexter was uptight about his talents, he could still use the help, even if he would be against it. "You said you'll need parts, right? We wanna help out if we want to!" she suggested, which was an idea that even Buttercup found herself agreeing with.

After giving a long think and huff, Dexter had to admit his need for assist. "It would be extremely beneficial if you could. But do not waste time, start collecting immediately." he said, with a tone that almost matched a sense of reliance or faith, actually surprising Blossom with his willingness to ask for help. With their work laid out for them, Blossom and Buttercup rocketed almost immediately out of the lab, shattering his windows with their sonic boom.

"Those windows were custom made..." Dexter muttered. With all the losses made within the last two days, Dexter quietly deducted at least $50,000 from his profits...which was never nice. The Professor gave a quaint nod to Dexter, signaling himself to work with the other scientists. For some reason, Bubbles had not gone out with her sisters, and was still here. But to a greater surprise, she looked like she was in some kind of deep thought.

"Hmm..." she hummed and murmured, staring at the blank wall as if trying to clear her mind for a clear answer.

"What is on your mind, Bubbles?" Dexter asked nonchalantly.

"Nothing, just processing this whole time travel thing. Though what's weird is that it's _Mandark_ contacting you. If this is like from one year in the future, I wonder what's gonna keep _you_ from sending those messages." Bubbles said, evoking an intrigued reaction from the boy genius. "Meh, just a theory! See ya, Dex!" she shouted cheerfully as she left the building to join her sisters, shattering _even more_ windows this time; $50,000 became $100,000.

What Bubbles had said actually puzzled Dexter greatly, and that problem became more prevalent to him as he thought about it more. If someone was to contact him in the future, why _wasn't_ it himself that sent the message? Of all people, why would it be Mandark sending the message from the future? What could have happened to him in a year's time that prevented him from enacting this amazing scientific achievement? After all, the future was supposed to be a Utopia, it couldn't have been a dystopian wasteland, that'd just be plain silly. But that only further provoked Dexter to ask the same question, where would Dexter be in 2015?

* * *

**ELSEWHERE ON THE KND MOONBASE**

Court was back in session.

And Two was counting every second of it. Because this would be the day where he could make or break it.

Four had said he needed to talk with someone who knew morse code, whatever that was supposed to mean, hence the need for yet another recess. Apparently, Four had succeeded in getting a response from said colleague, saying that they contacted the one who's pretty much responsible for this mess in the hopes of helping build Two's argument. The entire trial was no longer about whether or not Two was guilty. Instead, it had basically come down to deciding whether or not to go ahead and actually use Dexlabs tech or not. A debate that was much more worth his time

"This is the final session for your case, Number Two. Have you made any changes to your argument?"

"No, I haven't." Two continued. "I can only restate my proposal. Use the Dexlabs NanoComs to contact the areas on the outer rim and see what's happening, and temporarily re-establish KND communication channels until we can really figure out the problem with the original one."

1776 slouched on her chair, having given the proposition a great deal of thought during the recess. It seemed that the plan had some legitimacy to it: managing to reconnect the currently offline organization has been an issue for the last two days. They did need a solution, and fast, or the organization would eventually collapse completely.

"After a long and hard think about it, I'm actually beginning to see the sense in your plan." 1776 began. "Maybe it's because this is my second night without sleep, or maybe it's because I swear I saw the face of God last night, but I think we _can_ accommodate you. There would have to be preparations made for however this plan could possibly backfire. All Kids Next Door operatives on Earth would need to remain on high alert, and in guard of each of their sectors. The only issue with all of this is that we need direct authorization from the person who _wrote_ the rule to begin with, or we can't justify the changes that you're calling into consideration."

"If that's the case," a voice further down in the room, his face obscured, and his British accent standing out, finally spoke up, and got louder as he made his presence clear, "then I support Numbuh Two's proposal."

The operative wore a red turtleneck and olive-colored cargo shorts, along with some cotton socks and two KND issued combat boots. Over the turtleneck he wore a stark black vest that looked either like it was too small for him, or was made to only reach the half-way point of his waist. The vest was covered in zippers and pockets, more or less resembling a bulletproof police vest. The other noticeable thing was that he was completely bald, only wearing a pair of shaded sunglasses that brought more attention to that face. He began to step down the stairs, moving towards the floor of the courtroom, in a confidence that couldn't be mistaken by his friends.

"N-Number One?"

"Like I said," Four whispered to Two, leaning in to get closer. "Morse code!"

One cleared his throat to begin speaking, and pushed his glasses further up his nosebridge, his face almost stuck in a frown of seriousness. "As much as I dread to admit it, and as much as the use of NanoCom tech may jeopardize the world's knowledge of the Kids Next Door, Two is right. As long as we remain in the dark with only a botch job communications relay, we _are_ at our most defenseless. Numbuh 1776, I temporarily approve for the use of Dexlabs NanoComs for the purpose of getting the Kids Next Door communication systems back online."

The honorable judge gave out a large sigh, "There's gonna be a lot of paperwork for that." she said.

"Shall a simple _booger_ suffice?"

1776 took her glasses off and cleaned her eyes, as their case was finally getting somewhere. Turning her direction to the defendant, who had a much more excited expression on his face than anyone.

"Number 1776, your honorable KND nature, we've got the guy who wrote the rule _himself_ , asking you to provide an exception to our cause. Wasn't that all you needed to approve the campaign?" Two asked, strangely polite at this point.

"Number Two, I do hope that with everything that has transpired within this chamber, you've been able to understand the gravity of the situation?"

"Of course I did, ma'am! We're in space, how could I not?" Two said wholeheartedly, much to the annoyance of literally everyone else in the court.

"Oh shuddup, you squares!" Two shouted into the room, acting more alive than ever within the last two days. "I haven't made a good pun in two days, that's the best you're all getting!"

"Order!" 1776 banged the turnip once more, silencing the courtroom as she could. She needed Number Two to reaffirm his position in a serious manner though, without any joke or pun, no matter how clever or awful they could be. "Ugh...but seriously, did you?"

Two let a long breath slip, as he finally got to say the words that he'd been hoping to say to end this trial. "Yes, your honor."

1776 felt a wave of relief wash over her entire body, her entire head, even in her eyes. They were finally able to get this stupid case _done_ with, and she wouldn't have to be working constantly just to get through another second of it. She readied herself as she gave the official closing statement. "The Kids Next Door now runs the risk of being exposed worldwide, and should we be exposed for too long we could all be apprehended by adults more powerful than us. I'm giving you a 72-hour time period to sort everything out, Number Two. We're counting on you to fix this...so fix this."

Two nodded with intent, earning 1776 a much needed smile of relief.

"Charges have been dropped, resolution solved, this court is now FINALLY FRIGGIN' _ADJOURNED_!"

* * *

**LATER...**

Number Two felt so relieved to be out of that courtroom. He couldn't count the number of times he had to stretch his back, simply from sitting for multiple hours with seemingly no end. He, Number Four and Number One walked through a hallway that would be leading to the Moon Base's main hangar, a place that they knew how to navigate through by heart. Though, despite that, Four still marveled at those sweet sliding doors. They were coming up to an elevator that would lead them upstairs, with the same sweet sliding doors.

While in the elevator, there was an uncomfortable silence that filled the room. One stood on the left, Two stood on the right, while Four stood centered. Four could surmise why there might have been a coldness, considering that Number Five was particularly tired of this case herself, and probably had to shout her voice away just to get her point across to One. On the other hand, Two _nearly got punished or worse, decommissioned for something that wasn't his fault at all_. Surprisingly, despite Two having more reason to treat One coldly, it was him to attempted to lighten the mood.

"Hmm..."

"Whatsa matter?" Four asked, turning his head to his left.

"I dunno, I'm trying to think up some good elevator puns...but I don't think I'm able to _come up_ with anything yet..."

One could not simply ignore the toxicity that was a Hoagie Gilligan pun, as One and Four immediately began to groan. The joke could have _only_ worked if the elevator was empty, which it clearly wasn't. Why did Number Two always want to torture them with bad jokes?! Although Four couldn't say it was a bad thing, he remained pun-less and joyless for the last two days, until now.

"Yup, Numbuh Two's definitely back now..." Four said sarcastically.

Two playfully scoffed to that. "C'mon, Number Four, that was good, right? That's the cool gem 'bout elevator jokes, they just work on so many different _levels_!"

Provoking another series of groaning, Two smiled contently, seeming to be very joyful in his mood, despite the initially cold atmosphere. He turned over to the stoic Number One, who faced the elevator door with no thoughts but to move out of the elevator. Two decided to be the better man and break his tension as well.

"Hey, man," Two began, looking up to face One, "thanks for doing this for us."

"Not a problem, Numbuh Two." One said. "But do understand that this will be undone soon after. We're risking a lot to send a message to our operatives in outer space, and every moment we spend doing that jeopardizes the entirety of this organization. We have 72 hours to remedy that, so we must get cracking without any wasting of time."

Two nodded in agreement, but he thought to himself that Number One kinda didn't have to be a dick about it. He just hoped that whatever was causing this interference, whether it did originate on the outer rim, wouldn't be some unprecedented attack meant to completely cripple the KND. He really was hoping it wouldn't have to be that.

Four decided to break any remaining tension left by firmly stating their intention. "Right, now with that outta mind, let's try it our way."

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - GENIUS GROVE SUBURBS**

Five didn't have to wait long for Ben to leave the house. She was genuinely under the impression that he looked to murder her or something, or constitute some form of revenge that could make up for what she did. But he didn't. He walked out of the house as calm as when he walked in, and didn't say a word after that.

Five was not convinced by his unusually stoic demeanor, however. "Is she still alive in there?" she asked, both teasingly and concerningly.

"What? Of course she's still alive, what did you think I was, a supervillain?" Ben mocked. "'Why so serious?'"

"Yeahyeahyeah, I get it...Numbuh Five assumed too much." Five sa-wait, did she just refer to herself in the third person again?

"Hey, the third person gig, it's been a while since you did that!" Ben said, almost congratulating her for rekindling a part of her once thought to be lost.

Five chuckled with modesty. "Yeah...so what'd you talk to her 'bout?"

"Uh..." Ben gave a long pause to his thought. He remembered every detail, almost every sentence in verbatim, and he still didn't know how to fully process it. There was definitely a lot of emotion in the subject, something that he still wasn't comfortable thinking about, especially because of the impact it left on him. He spent so long thinking about it, he failed to notice that Five was trying to catch his attention.

"Ben?" Five repeated, puzzled as to what could keep him so focused or dazed like so.

"Y-yeah, it wasn't much. We...uh..." Ben didn't know what to say, or how to begin, "we talked...I mean...I don't think I want to talk about it right now..."

Five looked closer at his expression. The guy looked like he had the single greatest epiphany of his life, or in a state of shock with eyes so wide his eyelids were moving into the back of his skull. It perplexed her, and she began speculating as to why he felt that way, but nothing immediate had come to mind.

As if on cue, and right on time to save her from an awkward conversation, her NanoCom beeped. A call had been made to Five, which was already strange as she got _called_ on her NanoCom, rather than texted or messaged for the sake of safety against Fuse's monsters. If this was a call, it had to be really urgent for them to take such a risk. "This is Numbuh Five." she spoke into her NanoCom. What the rest of the conversation was about was unknown to Ben. But her facial expressions were telling a story on its own. Whatever this was turned a poker face into a frown, a frown into wide eyes, and wide eyes into a jaw-drop.

"Holy shit...really? That fast?" Five voiced into her Com, sounding incredibly surprised when she heard it, Ben looking at her in confusion. Five exchanged a look with him, but without any word to him she simply looked back to the device in her palm. "Got it. We're on our way."

"What happened?"

Number Five looked up to Ben, failing to hold back her excitement. "Ben...it's time to go..."

Ben once again felt like he needed his hearing checked. To comprehend such amazing information on its own was overwhelming enough. But if it was so amazing in its magnitude, then why didn't he feel like celebrating? Why did he feel like this wouldn't mean anything meaningful? Unlike last time, there was a sense of raging excitement about the fact that he'd be going back to the past, a much brighter hope for Earth as a whole. But now? It felt like a cheap cop-out. He wanted to help people, regardless of the time period, and by denying him that chance, he felt as though he was being denied the right to change the course of history. Ben was always criticized for his somewhat cocky attitude, but he always felt like it was a result of his altruistic drive. He always wanted to help people, but if he wasn't being given the chance to even do _that_...

...then what would have been the point to go back in time and start it all over?

* * *

 **SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

"Sir, we just got word that Ben and Number Five are on their way back." one KND operative called out. "Sky Monkeys just confirmed it."

"Can we confirm that they were transported via the safe route?"

"Checking, sir."

Mandark looked at the superior time machine with awe. had to give credit where credit was due for Otto. The kid had worked almost non-stop on the machine, and it was amazing to measure how much he was able to add to their progress just by pointing out some minor details. It was a fleeting thought, however, as the Time Lab was far too chaotic and busy to focus on one element. He kept running through systems checks, sometimes repeatedly. Nothing was supposed to jeopardize this experiment.

"Check the synchronization engine, assess its full energy capacity." Mandark commanded to the random fusion fighter, before moving on to address another. "Charge up the tachyons and synchronize the chrono-keys. You there! Go outside to make sure that the Plumber technology by the Hero's Square vortex is in correct frequency for particle conversion!" Mandark kept looking back, no matter how unimportant reminiscing was at the time. It was a good choice to integrate 2x4 technology into the machine, as it certainly made the KND scientists much more useful with an interface they were familiar with.

The tracking operative corresponded back with Mandark, "They took the safe route. The monkeys aren't reporting any fusion activity on their tails." Mandark found that information extremely positive, and the next information was all the more pleasing. "Word is that they just arrived, and are on their way to the time lab."

Everything looked like it was going according to plan. Mandark's mind was now thinking in motions, beyond his usual work speed, so much so that Ben and Five were in the time lab before he knew it.

The two moved forward, regarding the lab around them slowly. Five had a much more determined and focused look on her face, while Ben for some reason looked more sullen and in deep thought. The alien hero, who was once filled with altruism and impatience, now looked down to the floor without any aim or positivity, almost like he was a deep trance.

"Hey, Mandark," Ben greeted the boy genius, not in a better mood. "So it's really finished, huh?"

"I know, right?" said Otto, excited to return back to his own time period, but ignorant of Ben's lack of excitement. "ImeanthiswouldbetotallycoolifIhadmyofficialTimeSquadwatchoraccesstoaTimeSquadwatchandI'veneverdonesomethinglikethisbeforesoit'sanamazingach-"

"ENGLISH!" Everyone scolded Otto in harmony.

Otto realized the apparent insanity he was displaying, and quickly corrected himself. "Rightrightright, so sorry, um, I was gonna ask if there was anything else to it?"

"A few final steps and tests must be made, along with the last step of this other plan essential to sending you two back." Mandark informed the two, turning his attention to the main computer, focusing his speed and efforts into readying the final message. Theoretically, even if he sent it back so late, it would still register in the appropriate time, allowing for the scientists at Dexlabs in the past to work at their own pace. "With this final message, the last adjustments needed to perfect the synchronization engine will be sent to Dexter safely, and in almost no time shall Ben be able to save the world."

"Cool," Ben said, looking back at the door he came through, and beyond it, "I just wish I could save _them_ too..." he said out loud, failing to keep that thought in his head.

Mandark did not react negatively to that, but he still felt the need to remind Ben of his priorities. "They, and by extension, us, are a lost cause. I must remind you yet again that it is the entire world on the line...versus the few of us humans remaining on this infected world."

To lighten the atmosphere between the hero and the scientist, the operative had to say something to cool them down. "Well, sending it back to Dexter, huh? I'd say that's a first to me," Five jokingly responded to Mandark's earlier claim, "now you actually _want_ Dexter to take your ideas and be the first to create them."

That caught him off guard, confusing him as to how this might lead to Dexter's improved reputation instead of his. "How do you mean?" he asked an amused Five.

"No one's built a synchronization engine in this time before, until now since you made it so that Dexter _becomes_ the first." she laughed, with a devilish grin that mocked Mandark. He didn't take it well, turning back and quickly changing the message to make sure that it would be him, Mandark, to achieve the credit he very much deserved. He wouldn't condone plagiarism, even if it technically wasn't plagiarism to others, and he wouldn't let Dexter take the spotlight so frivolously.

Finishing the adjusted message, this time rightfully claiming ownership over the synchronization plans, Mandark knew he had to basically restart the configuration process for the message, which would take a little longer than usual due to the recalling of particles and further interpretation through the vortex. The second attempt would also require a late jump sequence, which would send the messages to the correct time-period based on the correct tuning of Larry 3000's tachyon supply. If that head even moved or tilted in the wrong direction, the flow of tachyons that were keeping the vortex open and allowing for the message to transfer could be dangerously offset, sending it to another time period, or just not sending the message at all.

The moment Ben was even close to the head, Mandark had to send him a reminder. "Don't touch that. Recall that tachyons are highly unstable, and that module is being used to power the messenger. One offset could ruin everything, so don't touch it." Ben moved away from the head, confused as to whatever that was about.

With that fact fresh in his own head, Mandark made sure to be wary of whatever would happen to Larry's head. But aside from that huge weakness, which he was already caring for, his hopes couldn't have been higher.

The genius at his highest standard had a mysterious smirk on his face, which was honestly the only way he could smile, so there wasn't anything mysterious about it. He thought to himself about everything going according to plan yet again, but this time he saw that everyone was handling themselves quite well, and there was little chance of things going to hell.

What could possibly go wrong from here?

Mandark was given a rude awakening from his celebratory thoughts with a very loud _rumble_ that shook the Earth below them. At first, they were almost unnoticeable; it could have been easily mistaken for a strong breeze or a small offset that shook the tilted treehouse and moved the rooms inside it around.

But then the lights began to flicker, which caught some people's attention.

Then there was a downfall of dust from the ceiling, catching most people's attention, including Ben.

And then there was the explosion, which caught _everyone_ _'s_ attention.

Despite the fact that the lab was hidden within the treehouse, in a secret compartment that was hard to find (even by Number Five and the previous tenants), the unmistakable sound of an explosion compelled all of the lab's occupants to dart their heads in sync to the door.

"What was that?" Number Five asked.

Soon after, the screams began to become audible, and the chaotic sounds of gunfire and laserfire emerging almost immediately. It was clear to everyone in that room as to what was happening outside.

Mandark decided to voice everyone's realization. "Oh no..."

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 25 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

The future Mandark had said that the final message and instruction would come through the same stream for bringing Ben back to the present. Dexter had informed the girls and the Professor earlier about this development, but he hardly believed that it was on their need-to-know list, as they were somewhat more busy with their given task. The girls had managed to bring nearly every supply or scientific apparatus from their home, some of which wouldn't even have any application to the experiment. Dexter was known, however, for his resourcefulness and utilizing any technology to his needs. Regardless of how many useless tech the Utoniums brought over, they had enough resources to put together a crude synchronization engine.

Now that they were here, they were all diligently working to fix Dexlabs' problem. Dexter had been typing tens of hundreds of lines of code, readying several machines for their use in the synchronization engine. A brilliant fury of pink, blue, and green lights filled the room, each working as fast as they could to get the arrangements ready.

Dexter was hard at work on his portions of the project as well, not just the technical side. Leaving his seat before he could forget, he moved towards the table opened up his NanoCom's most secretive module...the imagination energy transducer. Dexter wanted as much safety countermeasures or fallback solutions established as possible, therefore the experiment could be in his control should the future Mandark be as incompetent as ever. But as much as Dexter wanted to establish said countermeasures and get his purple gloves onto the modification plans...he knew that he had to finish his work on the code. Better yet, if the Powerpuff Girls were contributing so much with their near-titanic strength, what did he have to contribute?

Just as he was about to return to his seat to get back to the code, Blossom flew in front of him at almost rocket speed, and handed him a giant pile of new tech. "Just finished modifying them, you can plug them into the engine yourself, right?"

Blossom always was a good motivator, in that she just handed work and expected it to be done. It wasn't like Dexter could give her a 'no', not in the situation he was in.

"Gladly." Dexter affirmed, grunting due to the massive weight of all the tech we was carrying. Setting it down, and taking one piece of technology at a time, he made his way to the now completely rebuilt time machine. Buttercup was using her enhanced speed to assemble the hardware back together much faster than the scientists were able to, bending and beating torn metal back into shape with her superhuman strength. The scientists were able to tackle the rest, applying several programming screws with the back-up programming of the original time machine to supplement the modifications. Dexter took one of these programming screws, specifically one the size of his hand. Having moved towards a locker, Dexter brought out a new wrench he had built, approximately the size of a battle staff, as its larger size would be most ideal for the job.

Dexter flowed like a leaf in a river when it came to handling the absolutely chaotic but extremely busy laboratory. But even amongst the powerful he felt - no, he _knew_ \- that he would always have something to contribute, and it would always work in the end. He continued to run through the necessary systems checks, sometimes repeatedly, as he made his way to the engine. He had assigned about a dozen Dexbots to maintain outside security. Nothing was supposed to jeopardize this experiment, not his sister, not the other scientists, _nothing_.

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

The lab continued to shake, albeit non-continuously, but it was in gruesome harmony with every explosion and deadly scream from outside. It was getting claustrophobic, almost overwhelming. Everyone was still trying to process how this had escalated so quickly. They were on the verge of succeeding. They were so close, and slowly everyone could practically feel the plan falling apart, decaying rapidly as the fusions made their assault.

"Fuse is finally finishing what he started..." Otto realized, voicing everyone's thoughts, the horror on his face was shared with everyone else in the lab.

"No shit, Sherlock!" one operative responded, clearly not in the mood for pessimism.

Five had an idea, an idea that could at least rally forces from the other areas of the suburbs. "I'm gonna try to radio for help!" Five voiced, with everyone but Mandark turning their attention to her. But as she turned on the radio, and before she could even direct it to an open channel...

Several calls began to come through on the short-range radio system.

 _"bzzt - Anybody copy? Anybody copy, this is Plumber Charles at Peach Creek Estates! We are under ambush-bzzt-der ambush, rest of the plumbers are down,_ _requesting extraction to Sector V n-AAG -bzzt"_

_"Someone get'cher asses over here, and help us out! They broke through the wall! HEL-"_

_"Dexbot-Q232, filing report claim: 2234242, civilians all over the suburbs in need of assistanc-tidal wave incoming; tidal wa-"_

_"Someone help us, anyone, please help! We're in Pokey Oaks South and we need help! Send hel-Aah! AAAAA-"_

Suddenly, the radio chatter just...stopped. As if they were wiped out with a single force in a single moment. What filled the radio waves now were a score of complete static, loud and filling the lab with dread. Everyone realized the horrible truth, but were too petrified to even speak. If attacks from Peach Creek and Pokey Oaks were happening simultaneously, then it most likely meant that the other islands were under attack as well. This was it. Fuse was making his move, his checkmate.

[More radio distress signals are coming in] Computress reported to Mandark, who was staring at his tabletop, processing and assessing the situation himself. [Inquiry: Shall I play through more?]

"There is no need for that." Mandark ordered, with a solemn look on his face, a rarity for people sharing his intellect. It spoke volumes when even the smartest person in the room was looking worried. But what everyone else was thinking was less worried and more confused. Everyone in the lab was bugged about the sheer timing of Fuse's attack. They all thought the same series of questions: why would Fuse attack now? Why would he let them live long enough to nearly achieve victory, only to cruelly strip that chance away from them? It puzzled them, as they had been as discreet about their operations as possible, but Ben was the first to have realized the horrific truth.

"H-he knew...he knew this entire time..."

"Who knew?"

"Fuse...this was all part of his plan..."

"No..." Mandark protested, "no...that is impossible, Fuse has left this area of the suburbs alone for so long, and he decides to end it all now from here? He doesn't even have a clue about what we're attempting to do!"

"We were doing _something_ out in the open, and clearly Fuse noticed! You think he'd care about _what_ that was?!" Ben retorted, raising his voice before returning to his soft-spoken tone. "It was his plan from the get-go...the Fusion Two and his bombs was meant to be a distraction, so we'd be fooled into thinking that we were close to winning..."

A KND operative spoke up, "What? Are you suggesting that the guy's just been playing us this _entire time_?!" The operative was hoping that he was just talking nonsense.

Ben gave that operative a look that didn't reassure him any better, nor did it employ any doubt to an ugly truth.

Suddenly, a shockwave shook the lab, sending everyone inside toppling over each other. Mandark had made sure that Larry's head was still in the same spot and position, thanks to a numerous amount of cables and wires to hold it in place. The impact sounded like it came from outside, but its impact was unprecedented and completely untold in normal Fusion standards.

"What the hell was that?" Ben asked.

"It came from Hero's Square..." Mandark realized. He looked to the monitor, and opened a video feed of the view outside.

Standing amidst Hero's Square, and a multitude of corpses covered in fusion matter, was a fusion doppleganger. One unlike any kind seen before...its nostrils fuming with aggression. The hooves on its arms twitched constantly, and it's body kept shaking. The form it took was clearly hard to maintain. It's hulking figure and pose, as well as its constant shaking (even more than other fusion dopplegangers) and the fake fur that dripped off like water off a leaf and formed little puddles of fusion matter. The monster wore no weakness, no fear of any kind.

It's form, the burly and intimidating minotaur that it somewhat resembled, was only used to its advantage. An advantage in its scare tactic, apparently, as it gave a LOUD and TERRIFYING _ROAR_ , frightening everyone to the same effect of a horror movie. Only, unlike a horror movie, the danger was _very_ real.

"What kind of fusion _is_ that?" Ben asked, hoping someone would respond. Surprisingly, no one had any idea.

Mandark found the fusion's colors off-putting at first, but under closer inspection, the shape was all too familiar. In the days before the war, he had taken up a project to study imagination energy, and he came across several of imaginary friends at this place called Foster's. One of those imaginary friends had a similar outline to the hulking monster on the monitor, and a minotaur-like design and punk-ish clothes. The only difference was that this imaginary friend was purple in his fur and face, and wasn't exactly the brave-type. Mandark searched for his name, having temporarily forgotten it over time, until it came to him as he thought about it more.

"Eduardo..." Mandark muttered to himself, to the rest of the group he did not share the fusion's base counterpart. But what concerned Mandark wasn't the fusion's aesthetic approach, or the fact that it violated the memory of a dead imaginary friend. What was far more concerning was the final time portal. The genius inventor looked to Larry's head, still looking after it's well-being. He looked back to the screen, and realized behind Fusion Eduardo, _the portal_ _was still running._

Realizing that they hadn't been beaten yet, and he had yet to send the final message, Mandark refused to give up now. "No...this is _not_ over yet...everyone!" he shouted, drawing everyone's attention, "We still have time! We can still transfer the message to the past, and get the time machine ready for Ben and Otto's departure! Move it, people!" And with that, the chaos and business of the lab escalated tenfold, as Mandark was now racing against time to get the message sent.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 25 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

"So how are we sure that the next message would come through the park?" Bubbles asked. "Aren't these things supposed to show up at random?"

"The second message said that Mandark would toy with the tachyon particles to match the Lorentz transformation of our end. Theoretically, it should appear from the same place."

"Well hey! Let's hope for the best, right?" Blossom said, positive as ever. "I mean, so long as Mandark knows what he's doing, though."

"I have faith in Mandark. After all, 6 years of learning must have at least taught him _something_ about maintenance." Dexter added, attempting to crack a joke. Much to his delight, the girls actually understood said joke, calling back to that little invasion by those weird green aliens, where Mandark had invariably delayed the mission with his ego. They gave a small laugh, and Buttercup even cracked a smirk. But what was usually a small laugh was a trophy to Dexter; for him, any successful attempt at comedy would definitely require self-praise.

Whatever the case, he was glad that things could work out with Ben's return back home. He secretly cracked a smile behind his chair as he stared at the displays on his screen, waiting patiently for the third and final message.

Dexter repeated Blossom's exchange, reassuring himself and his wishes for the experiment. "Let's hope for the best."

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

"Just another moment longer!" Mandark shouted across the KND lab. "Sending the final message now!"

Ben crossed his fingers out of instinct, hoping that it would mean something at all. But the odds weren't even close to being in their favor, and much like the Earth beneath them, it was under Fuse's green gooey thumb. Another shockwave shook the Earth. Several KND agents fell to their sides, having barely gotten the chance to hold on for dear life. But what was more unfortunate was that the impact was so great that several wires connected from the synchronization engine to the object next to it began to disconnect on their own, leading to _Larry 3000's head to fall off the table_.

Oh crap.

"NOOO!" Mandark yelled, but his yelling didn't do any good, as the head remained unscathed, but it sent a shockwave of its own, expanding past the laboratory. The display for the monitoring of the portals suddenly went haywire, reading all sorts of levels in power and amplitude, and then suddenly, _there was nothing_.

There was nothing on the display, and there was no sign of the swirling vortex that glowed aquamarine once seen at Hero's Square.

It was like there wasn't anything from the start.

There was _nothing_.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 25 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

"W-what the-?!"

"What? What do you mean 'what'?" Blossom exclaimed, unsure of what Dexter was so surprised by, but once she saw the screen in front of her, her face of concern quickly evolved into horror.

"The vortexes, the information...it all just...ceased!" Dexter exclaimed back. "One moment it's feeding through about the final preparations for the plan to bring back Ben, but then it just stops mid-way! It's as if it just fluctuated in ways unimaginable!" Dexter checked back on the drone, and much to his horror...

The vortex had closed up. There wasn't anything in site. All he could see was some green-skinned dude and some ghost-looking weirdo next to a golf-cart, looking at the thing with intrigue.

There was no sign of it ever having appeared there.

There was nothing.

"Do you want me to check outside for Deedee?" Buttercup asked genuinely.

"No, this could not have been her fault, because the source of our experiment was from an _external_ source, rather than an internal source from the laboratory!"

"S-so..." Bubbles began, "what the heck happened?!" All four of them were, so to speak, horrified by this unforeseen turn of events, so much so that Blossom didn't even bother to reprimand Bubbles for using bad language.

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

Everyone looked in horror at the fallen head of Larry 3000, the worst possible outcome diffusing into reality. Ben and Five were also in complete shock, and even Computress was finding this hard to process in her processor. This was literally the only way to undo Ben's displacement and to send him and Otto back to the correct time period, and now it was out of the question.

What chance did they actually have now?

Mandark, who meant to look after Larry's head the most, and was the most visibly shocked and stunned out of all of them, was the one to stand up and remain confident.

"Everyone!" Mandark commanded, shouting the need to get back to work on the time machine, regardless of however futile it now was. "We may not have synchronization, but we can still send Ben and Otto back in time. It would be like trying to hit a bullseye while blindfolded...and while riding a horse, but right now...it's the only chance we've got." he finished his mini-speech just as another explosion was heard behind them. As everyone returned to work, Ben was still trying to wrap his head around the whole ordeal.

This was it, he thought. If the machine didn't work, then it would be over, there wouldn't be any other chance for Earth to be saved from Fuse's clutches. It was all resting now on the time machine, and without that, what chance did they have at all?

Ben pondered back to that portal situation Mandark told him about. From what he understood, they were sending messages back in time, assumingly to Dexter in the past.

But he couldn't help but think about that last message-portal. Mandark had told him before that the tachyons were highly unstable, and the slightest change in space could dramatically. Well, the shockwave was sure to change the space. But it made think more...if these now unstable tachyons had been specifically routed to go through the portal anyhow...then what would happen to the portal? Would it expand? Would it shrink? There was no telling what it could even do. Ben thought back to the still leaning treehouse, the smell of rotten eggs still foully present in the air. But the time machine remained their ace in the hole, despite a major setback in its functionality.

He could only hope for the best now, regardless of whether or not that best outcome would come now or later.

* * *

**THE…MUCH, _MUCH_ FURTHER…PAST: SEPTEMBER 15 - 1614 - TOKYO, JAPAN (EDO PERIOD)**

The cherry blossoms in their brilliant color shined under the sun, the natural beauty reflected onto the rest of the world like a mirror of light. A distant land so long ago, and one of fortune, could ever be so quiet to keep its hero in his might. But upon his blade and skin is bloody scars and scratches within. A hero's journey they do tell. One of love, tragedy, and of much blood spilled. The battles he fought, the threat that were crossed. The enemies he made, the friends he had lost.

Before, he had lost the one he loved to the ravaging laws of time. Before, he had defeated Aku. He defeated the meaning, the essence, the breath of evil. Before, he had been stranded for fifty years in tampered times and generations.

Before, he almost lost all that he knew and cherished.

So what would happen now?

The samurai sword will always be the path he walks. The sorrows he made and the joy he had lost. Hero to many, foe to most. With his stare he was like a ghost.

They called him Jack. His journey had ended. For he got back to the past. Where he was needed.

He rested amongst the field under the cherry blossom trees, where ladybugs danced to the wind elegantly. The wind was an elegant partner to their prances, with the right balance of serenity and ferocity. The wind took a turn, moving frantically, until a green light brought forth unexpectedly. The samurai called Jack looked back and felt knowledge pass and move through, a message across time filled with panic and rue. He referred to his sword, the samurai blade of good, the one crafted by the gods to send the demons back to hell. He questioned and prayed, hoping to find answers through the gods that wished him well.

But in his heart, his thumping beating heart. Despite all that he had lost, suffered, and hurt. A new mission awaited on the horizon, foretelling a fight for survival.

They called him Jack. His journey had ended. For he got back to the past. Where he was needed.

But it seemed fate had a different plan for him as it knocked on his door, for to the future he had to go once or forever more.

* * *

**Written on July 18th, 2018**

**RIP STEVE DITKO, the co-creator of Spider-Man, Captain Atom, and the sole creator of Doctor Strange, Hawk & Dove,** **the Question, the Creeper, Eternity, and Blue Beetle (Ted Kord). Many of these characters probably changed your lives, one way or the other, and their souls created by this wonderful man live on in us. Mr. Ditko, you were the one who exposed me to the humanity in the superhuman, that characters with great power must exercise great responsibility, and that most of all, they can live normal lives. They can make mistakes. They can sacrifice everything in their lives for the greater good. Because in the end, that's all it takes to be a hero. Thank you, for everything.**

**Written on October 23rd, 2018**

**RIP Luther Fallangel. I didn't know him personally, but he was a major FusionFall player who was best known for his hacking of the game. A friend of his had just stated on the forums with a heavy heart that he passed away due to a drug overdose. I know very little about what he did, and I wish to know if he contributed to FusionFall Legacy or Retro in any huge sort of way. I can imagine that he did, considering how he was a hacker of the game, so he probably was instrumental in extracting files from the game for the eventual recreation of FusionFall. If he did, then we all wish him a good rest, and a great thanks for all his work with the community.**

**Thank you for taking the time to read the above eulogies.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEVELOPER'S JOURNAL: Hours of Future Past
> 
> Thank you all for coming back to read more of my stuff! Please be sure to leave a review, because I only got 2 for the last chapter. I hate to force you to do it, but the more reviews here, the more people read my story. So please: More Reviews!
> 
> Oh man, I've been having a blast playing FusionFall again. The FULL original game as it was before the Birthday Bash is OUT! Technically, it's a version of FusionFall I've never played before, as I joined up around the time of the Academy, so that's what I've been so fascinated by: where the differences are and what was preserved further into the OG game's lifespan. It's been amazing so far, admittedly a little bit of an incomplete re-experience as some of the new characters aren't being added, and I've been loving doing my work there too. That's right. With the game out, I've managed to go to several of the locations that I could only dream of going to again, and take snapshots for reference in this story. All so you guys get the best experience possible in reading my work.
> 
> Though, because of the game's release, it may take me a little longer to write chapters, but NEVERTHELESS! I've got a tight schedule set for me. I'm going to be posting Chapter 5 and 6 on the last day of November and December respectively. I know that I haven't made good on such promises before, which is why those two are most likely going to be shorter and of a lesser quality. What will most likely happen is that I will go back to those chapters, and improve them after they've been posted, without changing any dialogue or story order (I hate it when Fanfic writers redraft the chapters and make it completely unrecognizable to how it was before. Y'know, some people actually LIKED it the way it was!)
> 
> Before I get sued or something, yes. I did take inspiration from Chillguydraws' "Return to the Past" comic for the opening, specifically pg.41-42. I know that is a bit shameful, so I'm crediting him with writing that scene. You can check out his incomplete comic on deviantart. Surprisingly, though, the part I wrote with the crevice/chasm/trench/bottomless pit that Rex and Bobo have to cross, and the fact that Chillguy had a very similar setup, was ENTIRELY COINCEDENTAL. Chillguy did the same thing (albeit, very abridged), and I had no idea that he did. So, that's that. I recommend you check his FF artwork, but not his other artwork...I'm sorry, but those pieces are just...not something I can condone.
> 
> Also, I'd like to say that I'm disappointed that Season 5 of Samurai Jack is not confirmed for Legacy. Of all the stories of that wonderful show, Season 5 knew how to wrap a nice bow around everything, while giving Jack some damn fine moments of character growth. It's the season that didn't bring back the show as we knew it, but it's the season that brought back the show as we remembered it, and the show that we would be more familiar with in our adult minds. So, all in all, SEASON FIVE OF SAMURAI JACK IS CONFIRMED FOR THIS STORY AS A RECURRING BUT SOMEWHAT MAJOR ELEMENT OF JACK'S FF BACKSTORY. I also want to do something that I thought about for a while (and if you guys are against this, then do voice those concerns in the reviews), so I've decided that in this story, perhaps even in the next chapter...
> 
> ...We may learn Jack's real name...
> 
> ..God, I'm evil...
> 
> Well, I guess it's high time we found out, anyway. The reason Jack never revealed or used his full name was because, as it is with most Japanese traditions, living up to one's name or family is of the highest honors. Not to mention, considering Jack is actually royalty, (being the legit prince to an emperor) his name has even more to honor and live up to. Because Jack initially failed in defeating Aku, he rejected his name, declaring himself not worthy of it. Skip forward to Season 5, and Jack has finally defeated Aku (with the help of Ashi) reclaiming his honor and his family name, even though he has no time to mention it. So while it may ruin the point of revealing Jack's name when he went without one for 16 years of content, in this case, it wouldn't be a disservice, it would be a reward for his determined and continued heroism and bravery throughout the ages.
> 
> Also, the part with Samurai Jack was written in part by a fellow writer who has asked not to be named. He wrote a poem regarding the ending of S5, and gave me permission to use it or adapt it as I needed to. So all credit to that little gem of this chapter goes to him.
> 
> Finally, my profile has not exactly been getting much views. I should let you know that I post updates and information there, because I don't want to post that stuff here. It helps keep the story clean.
> 
> That's about all I've got, see you guys next month. I promise.
> 
> NEXT CHAPTER: What We Make
> 
> -end transmission


	5. Chapter 5: What We Make

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold = Emphasis/Commentary
> 
> Italic = Emphasis/small memory moment
> 
> [] = Artificial Intelligence/Android Speech

**THE PAST:** **MAY 26 - 2014 - PORKBELLY CITY, ALBERTA - CANADA**

Stepping outside his house and taking a breather was always a good thing for him. It helped him center his already hyperactive mind. Dukey was the one who suggested to him that idea, and so far it had been working great. It worked when Dukey got found out by his mom and dad, and it worked when there was just too much arguing in the house.

But this didn't feel relaxing at all. Johnny felt like the opposite of relaxing. He was even worse than unrelaxed, he was mad as all hell. He didn't care that he was the one to take the serum, he just cared that his sisters screwed up _again_.

Whatever was in that serum, all it did was bind to his already growing onslaught of mutant powers that he certainly didn't ask for. He especially didn't ask for a neat-freak dad that absolutely hated superpowers, and one that would ground him on a whim.

But he didn't care at that point, he just had to fix this before the genetic code became, well, permanent...at least that's how he thought science worked.

Taking a single moment to figure out which direction was the United States, Johnny positioned himself and readied for a long run. He set up his legs, taking a deep breath, ready to take on a much greater stride.

Before he could do anything, the door to his house opened forcefully, slamming the side of the wall. There stood Johnny's father, the borderline obsessive person that he was, had a more than upset look on his face.

"Johnny! Where're you going?!" the irate father asked, shouting unceremoniously. "Get back inside!"

Johnny couldn't care less, instead thinking about what he was going to do when he would reach Tech Square. There were times when Johnny just wanted to strangle his sisters.

This was definitely one of those times.

Kicking himself off the ground, a surge of wind broke into his face, while another broke right behind him, as it was enough to shake the trees down, and knock his dad back into the house like he was being dragged back. The entire suburb shook to Johnny's newfound power: superspeed. But he didn't want it. It was only causing more problems for him instead of fixing stuff that he wanted fixed. Moving faster than he had ever physically remembered being able to, and more than that, he realized that it wouldn't take too much time to get to Dexlabs to eviscerate Susan and Mary.

Boy oh boy did he have some choice words for them! He could only imagine their _delightful_ reactions!

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

Everyone looked in horror at the fallen head of Larry 3000, the worst possible outcome diffusing into reality. Ben and Five were also in complete shock, and even Computress was finding this hard to process in her processor. This was literally the only way to undo Ben's displacement and to send him and Otto back to the correct time period, and now it was out of the question.

What chance did they actually have now?

Mandark, who meant to look after Larry's head the most, and was the most visibly shocked and stunned out of all of them, was the one to stand up and remain confident.

"Everyone!" Mandark commanded, shouting the need to get back to work on the time machine, regardless of however futile it now was. "We may not have synchronization, but we can still send Ben and Otto back in time. It would be like trying to hit a bullseye while blindfolded...and while riding a horse, but right now...it's the only chance we've got." he finished his mini-speech just as another explosion was heard behind them. As everyone returned to work, Ben was still trying to wrap his head around the whole ordeal.

This was it, he thought. If the machine didn't work, then it would be over, there wouldn't be any other chance for Earth to be saved from Fuse's clutches. It was all resting now on the time machine, and without that, what chance did they have at all?

Over at the farthest corner of the bunker, Ben thought to himself about consistency. There was a level of inconsistency that came with problems. Some would have said that problems are meant to be inconsistent. That they are meant to seem problematic and difficult in their nature.

By inconsistent, it came with how the work was proceeding in the Time Lab. At this point, they were just turning knobs and adjusting lines of code, unable to rework the time machine due to its dependence on the Synchronization Engine...which relied on a stable flow of tachyons...and another engine on the other side of time.

Because of Larry 3000's head falling off the table unexpectedly, a shockwave of tachyons had disrupted the tachyonic antitelephone needed to transmit a message across time. The message was meant to instruct the people of the other side to build their own engine, utilizing the residual tachyon radiation to link the two machines, providing a set destination . Without one...it was a lost cause.

The most threatening part, however, was the possibility of having to make a blind jump in time. The plan was to send Ben back to his time period before the war. They could have undone all of this. But without that connection, they wouldn't have been able to send Ben to a specified point in time.

As Ben had some more fleeting thoughts, this time of where that vortex could have even gone, he couldn't help but overhear what some of the scientists were saying.

"Maybe a blind jump won't be that bad, right?" one KND scientist murmured to another. "He could grow old, have kids, maybe set up a warning?"

"You think that's what he'd want?"

"More importantly, would anybody believe him?"

"Maybe Time Squad would be able to find him there?"

"Then why aren't they here now?"

Ben kept all of those comments in his mind without focus, thinking more about what would happen as they continued. Another shockwave shook the lab, this time only being a light one compared to the absolute devastation they had just faced mere minutes ago. It didn't change their confused reactions to the overall situation. He knew that whatever must have been happening in the past, it must have been just as confusing, if not more.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY, CALIFORNIA - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

The Professor had finished washing his hands from the bathroom, hoping the experiment would be done as soon as he left. He had been hearing quite the excitement and commotion outside, and he could tell when the girls were actively engaged with something of this scale. He could tell from their mere voices. Every time they'd helped him out, they would have made the same gestures and noises. It humored him.

But it felt strange when the noises outside just...stopped. As he was opening the door he wondered that maybe they were in awe from a successful experiment. Maybe it was taking a little longer than usual, just as some of Dexter's experiments had before (like that time with the green creatures), and so the girls and the scientists were calmly and patiently waiting for it to work according to plan.

Or maybe, they were in complete shock from a _failed experiment_ and a more-than-angry red-haired boy genius in a fit of rage.

The Professor found this out the hard way when a chair flew right across his face, barely meeting his nose, and crashed into an unidentified piece of machinery.

That must have been a close one.

The Professor, not knowing what he'd just experienced, looked to his left in complete bewilderment. Dexter seemed like someone had dismantled Computress, or if Mandark had reprogrammed her. But the strangest thing was that he didn't breathe a single word. No shout, no scream, just the rage.

Moving towards the girls, who could only watch as Dexter's rage played out until its denouement, the Professor asked them what was happening.

"Um, girls? Why is Dexter going insane?" he politely asked.

Bubbles was the one to respond. "I guess that's what happens when an experiment gets destroyed a _second time_."

Ah yes, the Professor thought, that could not have been a nice thought. Noticing the lab to be majorly empty, he had to wonder where the others were in all of this.

"Where are the other scientists?" he whispered to Buttercup.

"They left. Dexter told them to." Buttercup responded, informing the Professor and bringing surprise to his expression. If Dexter was so adamant of keeping the scientists here, why did he just let them leave like that?

Over at the other side of the main center, Dexter remained silent in his angst. He was so used to things finally working that he had forgotten what could happen if the experiment were to fail. It came to shock him, and he was petrified by his inability to save Ben.

"How could I be so blind..." Dexter murmured, chastising himself for his inability to foresee this sort of outcome. But he realized quickly, if he didn't allow himself to be blind, then there wouldn't be any issue.

He committed himself to staring at the unfinished Synchronization Engine, refusing to talk to anybody. He just stared at his failure like a statue, trying to make sense of something he had yet to comprehend.

Behind him the girls could only watch from a distance, plagued by their inability to help where they could. It pained them so, especially with the massive help they were already prior to the unforeseen error in transmission. But that still ran in their heads. What could have caused the antitelephone's sudden disappearance? Why did the message and most of its data just short out with no explanation? Why did Dexter punish himself for what wasn't failure? All these questions came about in their minds, and they knew all they could do was watch to find the answers they were seeking.

* * *

**KND MOONBASE - RECREATIONAL BRANCH**

"Just rewire it so that the purple wire meets the gold valve!" Number Two shouted to a random KND officer.

To call his project exciting was nothing short of an understatement. Number Two had managed to convince a higher-up in KND law to abide his suggestion, something that he hadn't done forever, and was now overseeing this project.

He, along with One and Four, had to stop by Earth to pick some of his tools up, as well as resting in an actually comfortable bed, and they had returned to the Moonbase soon after in order to ready the NanoCom-integrated communications channel. The project was moving at an extraordinarily fast pace, and if their timing was precise, they could have it ready a day early.

While finishing a day early would have normally been considered worrisome from an engineering perspective, Two was keeping a close eye on each operation as it was being executed, and nothing seemed like it would be causing a problem.

They'd be able to get full connection once more, and though it would be temporary, it would help get some idea of what was happening. Better yet, they'd be able to contact the scouting squads that they had sent to investigate the outer-rim.

They hoped for the best, and wished for everything to come back together again.

If it didn't come back together, then Two's head would be on a chopping block, courtesy of Number 1776.

That thought made Two shiver, but every time those thoughts came to mind, they were calmed down by Two's engineering expertise. Everything was working according to plan. Nothing would be causing a problem.

He hoped for the best, and he wished for everything to come back together again.

"This better work..." Two thought once again, before being distracted by another operative. "H-hey! You! That's not how you use a wrench!"

Hoped for the best...

* * *

**TOWNSVILLE - CITY CENTER - PLAZA ALLEYWAY**

Hanging out in the alleyway was common practice for the Gangreen Gang. On top of their dual-life as album-making award-winning rock stars, they kept faithfully to their roots as gangsters. They didn't harm anybody if they didn't have to.

The number of times they were arrested, however, was surprisingly the same. They had kept to better rules, so why would they have still been on the cops' constant hit-list? Maybe because the Powerpuff Girls missed their original punching bags...but what did they know?

It seemed ultra-normal today, though. No police, no Powerpuff Girls beating them up for loitering or something, not even any new songwriting ideas. It was all just peace and quiet.

Peace and quiet...until the strangest thing happened.

Out of the corner of their leader, Ace's eye, they spotted a man. A japanese man was walking the sidewalk. Now, in usual circumstances, they wouldn't be so rude to assume that anybody was of a stereotyped ethnicity. Sure, they beat people up, but they were never bigots. But it was just way too obvious here. The man was wearing a white and grey _gi_ in the style of a _kimoto_ , tied together with a grey _obi_ complemented by its drooping red tassles. He had his hair tied up in a traditional _chonmage_ (they knew that from their tour in Japan) and had a distinct scar across the right side of his face. Then came the katana, that smooth silvery katana...Ace could feel the temptation of just...taking it for hi-

No-no...never mind, they were beyond that...plus the cops threatened to retract their parole from them...and they needed that parole.

All the Gangreen Gang could do was look in awe at the strange man. What was more interesting was that of all the groups in the world, this man decided to come to them.

Despite his apparent man-out-of-time expression, as well as his outdated wardrobe, the man somehow spoke perfect English, so much so that it baffled each member of the gang, especially since their English wasn't all that great.

"Excuse me?" the man kindly asked, "I am looking for a place called "Tech Square". Do you know how I may get there?"

Ace and the gang were bewildered, alright. It was becoming apparent that the man lived under a rock his entire life, or so it seemed. They were so shocked by that, they forgot to even respond.

"Is everything alright?"

"Oh yeah man! Everything's...cool." Ace said, snapping out of his trance. "Uh...you wanna get to Tech Square?"

"Yes."

"Uh...you take that bus all the way east, and it'll tell you which one goes east, and uh...it'll get you there from Townsville."

"Thank you, kind soul."

"What?"

The man left before he could elaborate on what he said, confusing all of them right away.

Returning to their loitering, Ace found himself asking what a guy like that would be doing looking for Tech Square. Probably something important, he assumed.

"Ressponssible citizzenss, rrightt bosssss?" one of his fellow hoodlums asked.

"Shuddup, Snake."

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

In the two minutes since Mandark wanted to get things moving again, and the one minute since the lab was reeling back from the shock it received... _nothing_ of importance had happened. All that had actually happened was just more tinkering and murmuring from the scientists. That was what all of their efforts were amounting to, _nothing_.

The most Ben had even talked to the genius was in an offhand exchange.

"Do you still have the flash drive?" he had asked.

"Yeah." Ben had confirmed

"Bring it here." he had asked. "I have new information to upload to it."

That was it. No update, no speech of confidence, _nothing_.

Ben couldn't take this stance anymore, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. He had to stay back in case the machine would be ready. Finding little to do, he simply thought observing the images displayed on the monitor would help. But as he quickly found out, it only offered the opposite. Zooming into the frame was only but a magnifying glass to a more gruesome sight. The doppleganger had left a ghastly trail of bloody bodies, laying lifeless on the leveled lanes. KND agents, random fusion fighters, and Providence's most prized EVO agents were very clearly deceased. Ben couldn't bear to see such destruction, and felt his head spinning from the nauseating calamity.

This fusion was tearing through several forces for good, both human and metahuman, like it was clearing snow off the street. It made Fusion Buttercup look like a simple fusion spawn.

He had been stripped of a good reason to fight. He had been stripped of a good reason to hope. Soon, he would have been stripped of a good reason to be a hero. It made him think back to his conversation with Deedee...and how well that went.

* * *

_"I just need to talk with her." Ben said, undeterred from his calm, surprising the heck out of Number Five for his apparent stoicism. But to her, Deedee was said to be incapable of recognizing mistakes, and her screw-up deprived them of a major factor in the war. To Number Five, Deedee was so frustrating that she couldn't see how someone wouldn't be angry with her, no matter whatever sympathy they would show._

_"Definitely a revenge plot." she muttered to herself. Though it wasn't as quiet enough to have been heard by others._

_Ben attempted to ignore that last comment Five made; he could tell how she felt about the girl that was possibly one great factor in their defeat, but he didn't want to repeat that. He had something specific he wanted to tell, or even ask her._

_The hand-scan panel was smashed, a giant crooked hole centered at the screen. The panel had lopsided, looking like it was going to fall off at any moment. There was still a doorknob to turn, but even that had looked as dilapidated and ancient, covered in dust and dents. As Ben turned the knob and opened the door, dust flew into his face immediately. He coughed in reflex, waving away the useless particles to shield himself. Walking in was like walking into some kind of haunted house, Ben wasn't sure if something outside would jump and scare him. It looked completely pitch-black inside, even while the door was still open. Closing the door, the blackness then fully submerged the house. There was little to see aside from some obvious furniture, looking like it had been thrown around to opposite ends of their respective rooms. But aside from those silhouettes, there was nothing. No staircase, no hallway, not even the windows were visible. Ben couldn't even see his own hand._

_But further inwards the dark house was a small light. Ben had seen it when he turned to his left, but thought it was just a reflection of light from outside. However, as he continued to explore the house (as much as he could without tripping over), he found that the light was in fact emanating from the kitchen._

_Finally regaining sight of his feet, Ben's pace increased towards the kitchen. He turned to his left to find it in shambles. Windows were boarded up, faucets were dripping fusion matter, and a thousand shards of china were lying on the marble-tile floor. Turning to his right was another case of similar distress..._

_...and Deedee was sitting right there._

_She wore practically the same clothes that he first saw her in before he left. The same_ _single ponytail held at the top of her head, that went down as far as her neck; the same white pair of spandex pants, the same magenta top, the same silk pink sweater, which upon closer inspection looked more like a cardigan, that barely reached her elbows, and the same pair of ballet shoes._

_Yet, the clueless smile that creeped the hell outta him...was not there. The clothing was the same, the hair was the same, yet the smile was absent._

_Ben couldn't waste time any longer, he had to talk to her. What he was going to say had to be said._

_"Hey..." Ben calmly greeted, hushing his voice enough to be almost unheard. But in this house, one could have heard a pin drop. Despite that, Deedee remained silent._

_Ben kept trying to reach her. "It's Deedee, right?" he asked, "I heard you were..."_

_He had his eyes locked onto Deedee's thousand-yard stare, trying to see if she was paying attention to him. He wanted her to know nothing was her fault._

_"...distressed."_

_"Understatement"_

_The sound of Deedee's voice almost startled the seasoned superhero. Her rather long silence had made him somewhat unprepared to deal with her talking._

_"Okay...okay, progress." he murmured to himself, "So...how are you?"_

_She didn't respond after that._

_Ben sought to quell any worries that she had. "I...if you think that I'm here to...y'know, berate you...I'm not, if it means anythin'."_

_"Okay."_

_That was easier than he expected. He didn't expect Deedee to be so callous or unmoved by the sentiment._

_"I can already tell what Dexter was like..." Ben said, looking around the house and back to the scattered and demolished furniture._

_"You guess right." Deedee said, still mellow in her speech. "He was less than...what's the word?"_

_"Ecstatic?"_

_"Something like that...yeah..."_

_There remained an uncomfortable silence between the two, layered throughout different moments of their chat, and Ben could feel it's presence in the feel of a void. It kept biting away at their discomfort, making the situation feel much more tense than it actually was. Deedee decided to break that silence for the time being, though what she had to say wasn't all that nice in context._

_"I don't care if you don't care that I didn't care about your safety all those months ago." she continued inexplicably. Okay, maybe it's just wasn't nice at all. "It's common with me. Every mistake I've made always ruins something. Every button that got pushed somehow makes everyone's life more miserable. Name one time in your stay here that you've enjoyed."_

_"I-okay, this time isn't exactly sunshine and lollipops, but it hasn't been_ that _bad, like this one time when I had saved this entire KND squad, or maybe the time when...uh...when I...uuhhh..." Ben was drawing blanks at every turn of his memory. There wasn't one time where he really enjoyed being in the future. Sure, the discovery of the tachyons could've counted, but then Mandark said he couldn't celebrate or fight any monsters...and then that moment's emotional impact got squashed._

_In the two days he had been there, Ben couldn't say it otherwise: this place sucked. But he kept searching in vain, as something had to pop up, right? "Uuuuhhhh-"_

_"You can stop now."_

_"Okay..."_

_"I know you didn't come here to rant off about my stupidity...you're too kind to do that." Deedee pointed out, "But give me a good reason to believe why I'm still not at fault for what happened." Her voice was cold, detached even; Ben could tell her depression from that attribute alone. It made him think...what had Dexter said to put her in this mood?_

_"Well...if you hadn't sent me here...don't you think that nothing else would've changed?"_

_"W-what?"_

_"I...phrased that badly, but my point is that there's hope, y'know? We've got the chance to make things right. If you weren't there to...set that in motion...none of this would've been possible."  
_

_"Your point?"_

_"H-huh?"_

_"Dexter wouldn't stop with the barrage of insults once you left. He thought it would've drilled the point in my head if I couldn't understand it. And he was right. Every word of it was right. If someone like me couldn't change in time...why do you think that everything else'll change when you go back?"_

_Ben gave a long sigh in thought. This was something he always felt tested by, and here he had to reveal what that was. "Well...as a superhero, I'll tell you...change is always what we want. And most of the time...change happens. There is no fate, just what we have to make for ourselves...and without change, there'd be no hope either."_

_"But. There. Isn't." she continued, responding to Ben in an almost robotic way, as if she'd been brainwashed by all the hurtful comments around her to think and act that way. "What kind of point are you looking for in this? The damage's done; I don't see the need for some effort otherwise."_

_"W-why're you saying that?" Ben asked in surprise, "We're getting a second chance! I mean...surely you know what that means, right? Wouldn't_ you _want a second chance?"_

_"Did Dexter give me a second chance?"_

_With that, Ben had nothing to say. He came to realize Deedee's broken mindset. From what he had inferred, Dexter never did give her any second chances, and he never apologized for his arrogance or demeaning of her. He had a few thoughts to mind, such as Dexter only wanting his sister to be more wary...but then came Deedee's attitude. She was dead-set on that belief, yet she seemed so much more sophisticated than the clueless glimpse of a girl he had seen._ _Surely she should have understood that point, leading Ben to believe that maybe this demeaning had a level of weight to it, and whatever reaction Dexter had shown to her once he had left was the straw that broke the camel's back, or in this case...Deedee's very soul._

_The alien hero kept on trying to come to more and more reasons for how that didn't have to mean the death of their hope. But one last glance at Deedee's tired, stressed, and emotionally broken expression told him to leave her be. He didn't want to cause more damage to her conflicted views, or else he'd betray the very reason he came to her for. He navigated himself back through the dark and messy living room, stubbing his toe from a lack of focus. He felt too deep in his entranced and shocked mind. He felt his ideals and personal beliefs being challenged to a degree that he wasn't at all prepared for._

_Just as Ben was about to open the door, Deedee had one last thing to shout out from the kitchen. It was something that he had asked himself to shrug off for his journey back to the past, knowing full well that this would last with him for a very long time._

_"There's no hope, no change...not anymore," she said, "and if there was, then I would've stopped blowing things up a while ago."_

* * *

And so...they were there. The endgame, the finale, the last stand of mankind. The head was on the floor, the tachyonic antitelephones were lost. They had no way to contact the past, and were essentially making a blind-jump into space-time.

No hope.

No change.

No chance.

No...

NO!

Ben rejected that idea! He couldn't stand the thought of it! He had proven over and over again that he could turn the tides of fate to his favor. Every alien he fought, every conqueror he overthrew, every conspiracy he shut down, every fusion he pummeled in his stay here. It all _meant_ something! It had to! Why would he be here if he wasn't?! Why would this kind of chance even be offered to him at all? He knew, he hoped, that this was all worth something, but the only way he could find out was if he moved forward, and he couldn't move forward if he was being held back.

Ben walked towards the monitor, currently unused by Mandark, and referred back to the feed of the new fusion. The monster was snarling, prowling the shaking ground and desecrated remains of Hero's Square, looking for a challenger to surpass and kill.

It wouldn't be killing anybody, Ben thought, and he began moving towards the Time Lab's exit. And of course, the first one to notice was Mandark. Ben couldn't understand that, it was like he cared to notice what was happening around him when he wanted to. There could have been a mine that got set off and he wouldn't have flinched. But when someone was clearly trying to leave and save the world, it was already like the end of the world to him.

"Ben, where are you going?"

Another shockwave shook the lab, though this was a light one. A single lamp lost power, and nothing more. The scientists murmured in more worry, as did Mandark. But in this case, it was Ben who didn't care for it. He realized that he had to stand tall on his own. He couldn't stand the thought of passiveness anymore. He couldn't stand his inability to do anything anymore. He couldn't stand Mandark's polemic anymore.

"I'm going outside, and I'm finishing this."

Mandark's eyes widened with his worst suspicions confirmed. Ben was trying to destroy Fusion Eduardo, regardless of his power, and regardless of the fusions, he was trying to play the foolish hero. Mandark knew he couldn't allow that, especially under these circumstances. "Ben, I am fully understanding of your claustrophobic reaction to being kept inside, but you must in turn understand the chances you are jeopardizing here!"

Ben seemed to ignore the scientist, focusing on getting his Omnitrix operational. Turning to Mandark, he calmly said, "I know that you need me for saving the world. I just need to save your world before I can mine."

Mandark was baffled by his logic, not unlike most of the scientists in the room.

"If you die, you _won't_ be able to save your world."

"Then you'll send over Otto. I'm buying you some time to get the machine ready."

"How are you buying us time?"

"Sooner or later, that fusion's gonna find our bunker, and it'll annihilate all of us with one attack or shockwave like it's already doing. I'm the only one who can stop him."

The logic was sound there. The doppleganger was getting dangerously close to finding the treehouse's hidden chamber. Mandark would still not agree, however, that Ben was the _only_ one who could stop him.

"We can send out KND agents to buy us that time! You need to remain here!" Mandark protested. "Besides, Fusion Eduardo has been marked by that scanner as having an oversaturated fusion-matter composition!"

"Thanks for telling me the name, now I get to beat it up _personally_."

"Ben, are you acknowledging my worries as of the moment? An oversaturated fusion-matter composition means that this fusion is more likely to have a vast number of attacks to maintain its internal conditions and to annihilate you! You simply are not prepared enough to handle a fusion _of this magnitude_!" Mandark shouted, gaining Ben's attention before he could leave.

"Whose fault was that?" Ben angrily retorted, making Mandark pause in his words. The former had brought up a very valid point, and a point that he had dismissed earlier during a less relevant time. Ben kept walking forward, refusing to turn back anymore.

"We are not denying you the chance to change the past. The time machine is ready to send you back. What we cannot allow is you risking this entire operation for our sake."

"Why does it _have_ to be me?"

"What?"

"You could send Otto to the past and he'd be able to warn the others. Hell, the Time Squad could go _further_ back in time and stop Fuse from ever existing!"

"It wouldn't work!" Otto said, speaking up finally. "We have rules against altering the fabric of history. Time's like a large rope; if you cut one straw of it, the whole thing could unravel!"

"As established by Mr. Osworth, that solution would backfire due to the Time Squad's utter futility." Mandark said, evoking a more depressed expression from Otto. "There also exists another reason. If you do not sacrifice yourself here, and we send _you_ back specifically rather than anybody else, your contribution to our war effort could be immense! Some of us theorized that _your absence_ in the war was a major factor to _our_ loss!"

Ben felt taken aback by that, unable to formulate how an alternative could work now thanks to that iota of information. He was speechless, looking to the scientists in the hopes of finding a different reaction. One single reaction that could suggest that the theory had some fallibility to it. But he saw none of those expressions, not a single one. The only expression that stuck out was Otto's, which looked as if he held a grave element of knowledge to justify Mandark's information. Ben could tell immediately that it was Otto who had confirmed that theory, turning to him for questioning.

"Is that true?"

Otto could only give a quaint nod. A quaint nod was enough for Ben's rebelling to sink down. He knew that his return to the past would mean something because of his knowledge of Fuse...but it mattered on a battlefield perspective more? He felt more compelled than ever to follow the scientists' command and help humanity out by staying put.

But then another shockwave shook the tree, nearly knocking everybody off their feet. Getting back up, Ben turned around to see the faces of several KND scientists and soldiers in complete fear. They were on the verge of death, with fate splashing apocalyptic waves of destruction to the motion of their anxiety. Their hands, shaking. Their legs, shaking. Their eyes, crying. So many faces, so many tears.

So many faces, so many tears...and so many faces that could be helped.

Ben realized what he had to do. He realized the only thing he could do. Deedee had told him about the pointlessness of effort in an un-winnable battle. She had told him that remaining defenseless in this battle was the only way to feel at peace with the inevitable death.

But he knew the truth. What he knew was his Omnitrix. He knew that it contained the mutated metahuman samples of several different alien species, and would always help him save the day, or just the moment. But more importantly, he knew one thing relative here that was this was just a battle. This was all part of something larger.

This was part of a war, and this war was not over yet!

Not by a long shot!

After that long period of thinking, Ben knew what had to be done. "Maybe my help in the war is needed more than anything, and I'm not gonna abandon that responsibility...but that doesn't mean I can't help others right now, or else our situation here is compromised entirely!"

"Ben, you are putting the safety of forty people over 7 billion?"

"Leave it, Mandark! I'm gonna be fine, and you know it!"

"NO, I DO NOT KNOW IT! BECAUSE WE CANNOT BE SURE OF YOUR CHANCES, YOU IMPULSIVE _IDIOT_!" Mandark shouted, shutting Ben up for the time being. "We only have one shot at saving our world, and _fixing our previous mistakes_ , and you just want to throw that away for something so _foolish_ and _futile_ as some heroic nobility?! We are not going to endorse such an _illogical_ mission at the cost of everything we are holding dear!" Mandark finished with much panting, tired from having to argue as much as he did. But Ben wasn't done. After a moment considering Mandark's argument, he fired back with another argument.

"Fine, you want something logically tangible? _Homer_ once said that 'great things are won by great dangers'? What's so 'great' about sitting around and _doing nothing_?!"

"It wasn't even Homer who said that, Ben." Mandark corrected. "It was Herodotus."

"WHO EFFIN' CARES?" Ben shouted. "The point is the same, dude! That thing outside is gonna kill us all if someone doesn't do something about it! And frankly, if we can't or won't stop that thing, then what makes us think we'll beat Fuse in the future?!"

"I-" Mandark tried responding, only to be interrupted by Ben again.

"If we're gonna be so pessimistic about what enemies we have to face, or if we're only gonna focus on ourselves, then we won't have a shot at winning this war. The fusions might as well win if we're not gonna risk any chances to beat them! And when have wars _ever_ been won without risk?! They haven't been won by some bullshit _destiny_ or _chosen one_ , they've been won because all of us on our own _took our own risks_ , and worked as one to fight the battles that we alone couldn't!"

Mandark refused to be astounded by Ben's passion for heroism, but statistically speaking...he wasn't all wrong.

"I'm not looking to be some kind of 'chosen one'. I'm the guy with an alien watch, and I'm the guy _who wants to do the right thing_. And if you want to get in my way of doing that, Mandark, if you want to stop me from saving lives in **any way I can**?!" Ben continued to shout as he pushed up his sleeve to reveal the Omnitrix. He pulled it up for a proud display, keeping everybody back. "Yeah. Good luck _trying_! And if you really want to get this done as fast as possible, and to keep everyone safe for as long as possible, then **get out of my way**!"

A spell of shock shook the lab, though it wasn't from outside. No, this shock came from Ben's dedication to everyone, fighting the battles that they simply couldn't. They remained speechless, unable to argue with what Ben had to say. Some of them still thought otherwise, but ultimately, it was unavoidable for them to realize the need to act on their own. They had to rely on each other to fight those battles. This disconnected state that they all were in prioritized survival on top of all things, but without any drive or effort to push forward, they knew their war would be pointless. Noticing the door being shut tight as he was heading toward it, Ben stood next to it to request access outside.

"Computress, open the door." Ben asked politely and calmly, as much as possible anyway.

There was a much more distinct silence. The AI was acting unresponsive almost on purpose, as if she was thinking and debating Ben's proclamation herself. She usually was to side with the chief scientist's apparent opinion, that being Mandark; it made Ben feel like she was going to keep him locked in. But to his surprise...

[Affirmative]

She decided to agree. A wave of relief and shock collided within Ben, as the door slid open to let him loose. To change an artificial intelligence's way of programming was one thing, but to make it differ from its prime directive? Ben knew what he had said must've struck some logic circuits in her database.

The laboratory was a lot more quiet compared to the frantic mess it acted like mere minutes earlier. Every scientist sans Mandark exchanged glances with a mixture of confusion and epiphany, beginning their further work on the time machine as per Ben's instructions.

By the edge of the room, Number Five stood as still as a statue, not having moved since the head fell. She had listened to everything. Every word felt like a knock on the door to a once abandoned ideal of hope. That hope had died with her loss throughout the war. But now, it felt an awakening. She realized how useless it would be to simply 'sit around and do nothing'. If Ben wanted to prove that fighting against these aliens was worth something, then it would take a lot more than a passion to get that job done.

She knew that like everything she herself had fought for, it would require teamwork. And teamwork only happened through action.

* * *

**ELSEWHERE IN THE KND TREEHOUSE - MEDBAY**

The tremors continued to shake the medbay with great calamity. Syringes were being tossed around the room, operatives were constantly being knocked off their feet. Tables were falling over like a pack of dominos, as if there was a rhythm to the chaos before them. If this symphony of catastrophy meant anything to Number 142, it was that Fuse was wiping his shoes on their "unwelcome mat".

142 also thought to herself that if she was to survive this, she really had to work on her similes and metaphors.

Her casual thought was harshly interrupted by another shake. Having evacuated most of the patients into a bunker for safety, she had left herself to take care of Number Two's comatose body. It was difficult, to say the least. She'd been trying to do that for a while now, and Two was either a really heavyset guy or these gourneys were crafted with a far denser material than stainless steel. 142 tried with all her might to resist the constant impacts that descended across Sector V, and shook the ground so much.

She hoped someone, hell, anybody could help her with this.

To her shock, but not through the shockwave, a surprise came indeed.

"Whhyesssmiss, I'ddefinlylikesumchoclatwaferswith'at..."

142, in all her medical expertise under KND, couldn't believe the timing of his recovery.

At least then it wouldn't have to be so hard to push him around.

* * *

 **THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 -** **KND MOONBASE - RECREATIONAL BRANCH**

The utter lack of tries it had taken them to get this thing right was a dead ringer for success. Having finished setting up a marker-microphone speaker, the system would be going live soon, and several KND members had lined up to see the new system in action.

"Okay everybody! We're almost ready so keep holdin' onto your - what time is it?" Two said in a tangent - quickly checking the time - with passion, "Uh - your dinnerboxes, apparently!" The KND weren't enamored by Two's excited prospects for the project. They just wanted to get the system up and running. Luckily for them, Two was ready with that sooner than they thought.

"Aaaaaaaanndd!" Two slurred, building the hype towards the inevitable completion. "We're live!" He confirmed. With that, several of the KND members pulled out their NanoComs to find themselves automatically linked to a network. They were live, and the KND were back on the grid. Though they all knew they had to act quick. It wouldn't take obscenely long for the governments of the world to recognize different or foreign NanoCom servers being used across space, so they acknowledged its hopefully short lifespan.

"Here, I've got it." One volunteered, walking up to the front and taking the marker-microphone. "Kids Next Door callsign: 9er flyer 19343. Do you read? Please respond."

"How do you know their callsign?"

One turned around slowly, and behind his glasses gave Two a look of disbelief. In the many years Number Two was his best friend, he thought it to be common knowledge about what he was like. Two understood immediately: questioning Number One's devotion to the KND to the point of extensive research was rhetorical.

But to Number One's response, not a word came in response.

One tried again. "Kids Next Door callsign: 9er flyer 19343. Do you read? Please respond." But still, there was nothing.

He tried once again. "Kids Next Door callsign: 9er flyer 19343. Do you read our transmission? Please respond as soon as possible." But still, there was nothing. Just more dead radio silence.

"Maybe they don't have their NanoComs?" one operative questioned.

"The squad was apparently comprised of teenagers," One reaffirmed, further showing his knowledge, "what kind of teenager _doesn't_ carry a NanoCom?"

They couldn't argue with that. Being teenagers themselves, and remembering the age before the NanoCom, kids were _constantly_ on their phones and social networks. Why wouldn't this squad have NanoComs?

"Yeah...yeah, they probably think it's their moms or something." Two reasoned, realizing that the scouts weren't exactly aware of the NanoCom alternative

"Keep calling them. They have to respond at some point."

 **TWO HOURS** **LATER**

"T-try it again."

"Uh-huh..." Two responded. Though frankly, he _shouldn't_ have responded. Because the only response that mattered was the one from the scouts.

And it had been _two HOURS_ without one. _TWO HOURS_.

JOY.

It was so JOYOUS that Four had taken a nap at his station. It was so joyous that everybody but these three had left in what was definitely NOT boredom.

JOY.

"KND call...thing: 9er...flyer...schmyer...19...somethin'. Check your NanoCom...please respond..." One's voice was almost completely gone, as if it withered away with a cold wind. He couldn't be blamed though. It's not _his_ fault no one checked their NanoCom...

Y'know that the narrator can feel the time pass through transitions...right?

Then, as if a miracle from the heavens itself...they **FINALLY** got a response.

_"WHAT! WHAT DO YOU WANT, MOM?! I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF HANGIN' OUT WITH MY GAWD-DAMN FRIENDS!_

The unexpected shouting sure did wake them up. Two had sworn that he heard Number Four fall off his seat.

 _"COULD YOU PLEASE JUST **WAIT** FOR ME TO COME BACK HOME AND **THEN** WE'LL TALK? HUH?" _The transmission continued. Clearly the guy on the other line was as irritated as they were, if not more.

One, once fully awake and aware, grabbed onto the marker with a ravenous speed, as if he had been waiting just to grab the marker for that single purpose...which was the case. "Kids Next Door callsign: 9er flyer 19343. Do you read our transmission? Please respond as soon as possible."

_"W-what?"_

"We're not your mom...we're KND, and we're checking in to see your progress."

_"Whaddya mean you're KND?"_

"What else could that possibly mean to you?"

 _"Well...why're you calling us on our NanoComs?"_ The KND agent asked. _"_ _Isn't that against the Book of KND?"_

"Not important right now." One said. "What's important is your status update. Care to share?"

_"Uh...y-yes sir. I-uh...sorry for screaming-"_

"Moving on!"

_"Yeahyeahyeah. Uh...well, we're just about to reach Saturn Base on Titan, and we're a few minutes away from , if it means anything."_

"And what of Jupiter or Venus Base? Did you check out the rest of the bases with communication issues?"

"Yeah we did. Everything seems to be fine in those areas." the pilot responded. "We kept finding the point of origin to be further down the solar system, like some sorta domino effect. We're working towards Pluto Base to find what's happening."

"Operative, switch to video feed. We need a visual."

 _"Copy that."_ The pilot agreed. With a few clicks and presses heard from the other side, they had a live transmission. _"You reading?"_

Slamming his fist with joy onto the table, One gave a proud smile. "We've got it!" he confirmed with triumph. Two and Four both had their own celebration behind One, chest bumping at their victory (also knocking Four across their setup). "Proceed with the mission." One continued, getting more serious, as did Two and Four (who had trouble getting up).

The next few moments was _**so** much more productive_. Four was writing down a detailed report of everything the scouts were doing, regardless of anything interesting happening or not. One kept informing the team to make or note of anything that they spotted. Two had been monitoring the video footage they were sending constantly, checking their movements each step of the way to see where the problem laid. Each of the three operatives were more excited than usually, being able to prove a case to the higher ups of KND, and being able to handle their problem with the communications.

As Two once again returned to the video feed on the old-TV monitor, he noticed something as the scouts hovered over

It looked like some kind of green...egg. It actually looked familiar, and he was honestly drawing some blanks as to where it might have come from. It was pulsating, like a heart, oozing out some strange liquid on its own...and more gears were beginning to click inside the head of Hoagie. Two was beginning to recall where this was coming from, but he was questioning what it was doing on Titan. Just then, he realized that the scout ship had stopped moving.

"Hey, have they moved in the last minute?"

"No they have not, Numbuh Two," Number One had said, "here, let's see what's keeping them. Scout Ship 19343, do you copy?"

There was a strange silence...like no one was even there. One tried to check on them again.

"Scout Ship 19343, do you copy?"

Another silence. One felt he had to keep trying; he didn't want Two's viability being wrecked. "Scout Ship 19343, do you copy?" he responded.

...

...

...

_"HELP!"_

While none of the operatives got scared at that, they did jump, not expecting to be pranked. Laughter was heard from the other side, loud enough to make its way through the marker-microphone, anyway.

"Scout Ship 19343, do you copy?!" One repeated with anger. He took his work seriously, and would have appreciated it if this pilot wasn't such a joker!

 _"Yeah, yeah, we copy, jeez."_ the pilot responded. _"What's your issue?"_

"We've noticed that you have stopped moving. What's happened?"

Gasping all of a sudden, the pilot realized he had completely forgot to tell them about their discovery. _"Oh, right. Sorry 'bout that. We found Saturn Base._ "

"That was obvious, pilot. It's a gigantic alien tree. How would one _not_ notice it?"

_"How would the adults not notice commercial airliners and ships stuck in an extremely large tree in the middle of a suburb?"_

"Adults don't notice because they're adults!" One argued, feeling taken aback by this pilot's crude criticism of the KND. "Kids notice because KND. Do you see an alien tree or don't you?"

 _"I do! But I-here, let me just..."_ the pilot sidetracked himself to push a few more buttons. Two watched as the camera moved away from the green egg to a fully visible treehouse. But...something was off about this treehouse. Sure, the rings was there in the background, some areas still comprised of those unspeakable plushdolls, but the focus remained on what was in front of them. Most of the interstellar bases usually had the same setup. The same bright tree roots and nodes that covered the tree like chicken pox (though for each base those nodes differed in color) with several glass walls to cover a larger city-like array of objects. The objects on Saturn Base were mainly satellites and discarded KND C.O.O.L.B.U.S. These many stations each were meant to be lit in a yellow color, marking their presence on KND scanners.

But it wasn't lit. It wasn't lit...at all. The base looked dead, almost abandoned, like something out of a horror video game. The roots were covered in what could only be described as some kind of glowing vine, green in color...and once again Two's memory began to jolt back up, recognizing this stuff under close inspection.

It couldn't have been those things, right? The ones from five years ago?

At that moment, he wondered if he should have told Number One and Four, but part of him disagreed to do that. After all, those spawn things were only a bunch of havoc-causing creatures that just reproduced from those eggs to break stuff. After all, it wasn't like it was from some larger more hostile alien force designed to assimilate life, right?

Number Two really felt that one was on the nose, wasn't it?

Still under the relaxed mindset, Two listened as the pilot brought him back to focus. _"You're able to see the treehouse, right?"_

"Yes, clear as crystal." One responded. "What happened to it?"

 _"That's what we've been trying to figure out, 'cause it was like this when we got here."_ he responded. _"I've already sent my second-in-command to check it out; that's why I'm stuck here waiting."_

Okay, that was a relief, they each thought. They knew as soon as the second-in-command would come back, this process would be back on schedule, and no further-

Wait.

Did he say 'second-in-command'?

So...what happened to the third or fourth? Or any of the other subordinates?!

Four surprisingly caught onto that inconsistency really quickly, and with a confused frown on his face he snatched the marker-microphone away from One to speak into it. "Oi! Whaddy'a mean your 'second-in-command'?" he spoke. "Didn't you send your military team first?"

_Well, yeah...then they...well...got missing...and then the scientists we sent to look for them went missing..."_

Four's eyes widened at the realization of what had happened to the squad.

_"Then they went missing, so we began sending out the main deck's operatives...then they went missing..."_

Turning to Number One, who had been perched over Four's shoulder like an owl listening into everything, exchanged the shocked looks. They were slowly realizing that something was not only wrong, but that the entire scout team was falling to mortal danger.

 _"...t_ _hen I sent my second-in-command-"_

"Pilot! Make like a u-turn and get out of there while you still can!"

_"W-What?"_

"Can't you tell something's not right? You're the only one left, aren't you? You need to get out of there before what took your friends takes you!"

 _"And act outside of my orders behind 362's back? Fat chance!"_ he responded rudely. _"Besides, I thought using NanoComs upon anything else was_ against _protocol!"_

He had aimed that specifically at One, who generally seemed unmoved by it, but there was nevertheless a silence.

Then, as if out of nowhere, the screen blackened. Number Two didn't understand what had happened, looking around the edges of the screen to look for the problem. But he soon found the problem. Nothing was wrong with the monitor.

The power on the other side _had gone off_.

Suddenly, an inhuman shriek pierced the silence, drawing everyone's attention to the screen, seeing the pilot look upwards in time to catch the rapid movement of something as it rounded the path of the hull towards the corner of the C.O.O.L.B.U.S. It was too fast for anyone to comprehend at first, even the pilot on the other side, but once the thing came into full view on the landing, a single flashlight cornered the sniveling little alien on its silhouetted and dark look.

The pilot lifted up and used the camera to gain closer inspection upon the little creature, to find a green scorpion-like alien composed entirely out of a gooey substance. It had no legs, yet it had a jagged mouth as well as two glowing red eyes. Two, looking over to his side, saw as Four and One's memories were coming back to remind them of what they were dealing with.

Knowing their transmissions were open, and thus hearable to others, One knew to slowly move his hand toward the microphone, trying to make as little sound while trying to direct the operative away. But before he could even do anything...

The spawn decided to start shrieking at a horrific pitch. It's sound echoed and disoriented the pilot, dropping the camera on its side. The camera dropped to the side of the windshield, and to the three's horror, they saw something worse.

More and more spawns hopped over the parked vehicle, most likely coming from the green egg; they came in hordes, almost covering the windshield. It was here, that all three terrified operatives watched as they saw a much greater threat literally on the horizon.

Quickly rising was a gargantuan green planet that almost moved with the spawns, as if it commanded them. It had the most unnerving of looks, having thousands of planets almost fused into it, attached to it like tumors.

But aside from that, they heard gunfire, and then more shrieks, both of human and spawn. Though the latter stopped quite early...and began gutting the pilot piece by piece...

Or at least, that's what they all thought from the several sounds coming from the audio receptors. There was so many gory sounds...they couldn't tell which sound belonged to which organ.

Only one familiar sound played.

_"HELP!"_

They couldn't respond.

_"HELP MEHEHEE!"_

They couldn't respond.

They could only hear.

And they could only watch.

Blood splattered the camera, creating a red glare from the screen for all three of them to gaze upon, filling the room with its horror. Having already seen enough, Two terminated the transmission. All three of them in shock, Four asked the obvious question.

"W-WHERE'RE THEY GOING?!"

"Oh my god..." One said, thinking back to the spawns' direction and trajectory, figured out where they were most likely coming to. "those things...they're headed for the moon!"

Realizing what they had just gotten themselves into, they turned to One with wide eyes...after all...

...who's to say they would stop at the moon?

* * *

**TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

It had been three hours at work for Dexter. Three hours of studying the machine with a close eye. But the problem was clear to Dexter. He had no understanding of what he'd been doing. He recognized certain components, some foreign components only recognizable in their function. Yet still, out of three hours, he had gained nothing.

The girls didn't know how they could help out, having sent the Professor home to wait for them. Bubbles and Buttercup spent their time looking around the lab, but it was a tour without a focus, and without aim. Each of them felt quite useless, and almost defeated. Usually, they did something fun or heroic to compensate for that, but it wouldn't have worked here. While they had to leave every now and then to save Townsville, they came back to see if Dexter could let them help.

But he didn't ask for anything. He just kept staring at the incomplete Synchronization Engine, mesmerized by its complexity, and petrified by his inability to put the puzzle-pieces of this machine together.

"Nothing..."

"What?" Blossom asked.

"There is nothing..." Dexter repeated, finding himself giving up. "Nothing I can do...nothing I can build off of."

"You absolutely sure?"

"If I wasn't sure...would I say anything?"

Blossom hated her apparent uselessness, frustrated by not being able to do about anything to help Dexter. She remembered all the times when she was distressed and others would help her, and Dexter deserved just that. But with his callousness and what had transpired in the last three hours, it would have been tough to offer him any consolation. Nevertheless, she knew giving up wasn't worth it. She figured she had to try something at the very least. "Dex, I...I know that we haven't talked as much as we did before, so...what I might say may be a little...late, but you don't have to blame yourself for any of this." Continuing her consolation, Blossom walked closer towards him. "What happened wasn't some mistake, it was completely out of your hands. When we're broken down, we're meant to pick up the pieces, and move forward. Rejecting those pieces isn't...it's not going to help in the way you think."

Dexter calmly turned to her, offering her a glimpse of his black eyes behind his thick glasses. His eyes had the feeling of paradox. Blossom could tell that he had tried telling himself the same thing, and the technology was in fact the problem. He couldn't understand it despite his vast intellect. "It remains a matter of the failure, not the help involved." he argued morosely. "I failed to do more, Blossom. I failed to foresee the chance of failure. I failed to recognize the alternative errors or risks...just like Deedee..."

"You-no!" Blossom objected, restraining her more vigorous personality to be as heartfelt as possible. Feeling more confident, she walked closer to Dexter to comfort him more. "No, Dex, I...it's hard...to come back from failure...I get it. Me and my sisters get it. When you're idolized by so many...you've got so much on the line, and when you screw up it feels like there's no going back. And because of that, there-"

"But that is what this company was meant to be...it was meant to be more. It was meant to _not_ fail, and I failed my friend when I sent him through that machine!" Dexter continued, refusing to treat himself lightly on the experiment's failure. "I feel as worthless as my sister. If I am surrounded by such astounding technology, and I have the most acute and discriminating understandings of the machinery, then why can I not figure this conundrum out?! All of this is because I failed to do more!" The boy genius shouted, practically pulling his own hairs out. He kicked the chair he had sat on to his left, hitting Blossom instead of flying across the room. The chair, rather than ricocheting off of her, bent around her shape like tin foil as she raised her forearms in a cross to cover her head. The now-molded chair fell onto the floor, clanging loudly and echoing in the empty lab. The two other girls came to Blossom instantly upon hearing it.

Dexter, looking at what he accidentally did, widened his black eyes, his glasses now on his nosebridge. His mouth hung open in shame, moving towards Blossom for an apology. "I-" Dexter began, "I apologize, I did not mean to-"

"It's fine, 'didn't feel a thing;" Blossom said, immediately forgiving him, "it's okay to be frustrated. But moping or kicking things around won't solve anything either. All we can do right now, without anger, is to just keep trying to fix the engine, even if it never works. Because there's always another way."

Another silence consumed the lab, making Dexter hang his head down in deep thought. Theoretically speaking, Blossom's logic in this case was a bit flawed, but ethically speaking...she wasn't completely wrong. It was an ever-growing debate in Dexter's mind, something that tore him apart sometimes. He questioned if he should follow logic or if he should follow morals. As a scientist and as an educated man, he had an obligation to face facts, but whenever this involved his friends or associates, he had trouble accepting the facts if it meant something negatory to him. If Dexter remembered correctly, this was what so many people had called "denial" or "arrogance". But it felt like more than those simple definitions. He had no way to confront things such as failure without denial, but in the end, with the facts facing him first, he couldn't deny his failure. For the first time in many years...

He didn't know what to do.

Finally ending the silence, everybody had heard a door open, and soft and slow footsteps approaching.

[ **Intruder Alert** ] Computress warned. She could only do that once, though; without any outward reaction from Dexter, the A.I couldn't actually activate the interior defenses. Everyone was simply distracted by this visitor.

They all turned to face that door.

No one seemed tense, accepting the uninvited presence.

When they saw the shadow of the tall well-built man entering, none of them raised their fists or readied themselves.

They just calmly watched as a a normal man entered the laboratory.

But it was the attire of the man entering that caught them off-guard.

The man was wearing a white and grey _gi_ in the style of a _kimoto_ , tied together with a grey _obi_ and complemented by an extra belt with a set of drooping red tassles. He had his hair tied up in a traditional Japanese hair topknot, and a scar on the right side of his profile. He was calm in his posture, mood, and voice as he spoke up and asked a simple question.

"My apologies for the intrusion, but is this Dexlabs?" the man calmly asked. "I had hoped to knock on the door, but these droids wouldn't allow me to."

Not expecting a question from a man like this, they didn't know what to think or even say.

Dexter, being frustrated enough and mentally defeated as it already was, decided to be rid of the silences. He simply stepped forward and spoke up. "Who are you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Who are you?" Dexter repeated immediately, refusing to let the man speak or voice his confusion. "How did you find your way into this facility?"

Finally realizing that no one let the mysterious man in, the Powerpuff Girls flew up and readied themselves. This could have involved a fight.

"There is no need to eviscerate this man for the excuse of breaking and entering. Girls, stand down." Dexter reasoned, refusing to turn his head and lose focus on the stranger. The girls looked down, and only lowered themselves slightly. But they still kept themselves on the edge, ready for a fight if it broke out.

"I thought the Dexbots were maintaining front-door security."

The man's eyes widened at that. He clearly realized that he made a mistake of some sort. "Oh...those were yours. Forgive me if you find them a little bit...destroyed. I have had a few issues with robots in the past..."

Dexter raised a brow, not understanding what the man was trying to say. "So you destroyed them." The girls rose into the air again.

"Only after they pulled weapons on me." The man digressed, prompting the girls to hover back down. Furthermore, Dexter's more offensive stance took a step down, allowing for the boy genius to think more clearly and communicate more politely. Though not before the girls exchanged some weird glances; why on Earth would Dexter equip his security-bots with deadly weapons?

"Then allow me to apologize for my rather precautionary measures. We were expecting someone el..." he said. But he couldn't finish due to a glaring distraction. With that distraction, those apologies he gave were immediately rescinded by a glance of the man's strange accessory. The sheath of a sword...and _the_ sword that it held.

"Where did you get that sword?"

Put off by the abrupt questioning, the man acted surprised at the boy genius's inquiry. Not even the girls fully understood where Dexter was going with that. "What do you mean?" he asked innocently.

"Do not play me, random stranger. It could come off as a replica, but I would recognize the real handle and scathe from a 50 meter post." Dexter continued to argue, holding back no reason to be irritated. "The black and gold pattern, the black silk leather on the hilt, the Egyptian and Japanese iconography melded on the sword's guard. It's a hilt and blade that is not very hard to miss. So allow me to repeat myself. _Where did you get that sword?_ "

"Rest assured, the blade is mine." the man said, defending himself and his integrity. If only this boy knew...but how did he know each detail of the blade's aesthetic? "But how were you able to-"

Dexter wouldn't let the man finish his sentence, and continued ranting his suspicions. "Then there is also the fact that that exact blade, that exact sword, _is kept in a museum with Tokyo's most precious historical artifacts._ " Dexter proclaimed, taking a much more aggressive tone than before. "Did you steal it?"

"I would harbor no such greed." the man claimed. "I have come from a far away place, one that may be hard to comprehend. So please, if you could indulge me-"

"Q-12!" Dexter shouted to the Dexbot across his lab, who immediately treaded over to him at his call. "Call the police!"

"There is no need for that, sir." the man said, trying to reason with the irate scientist.

"Right now, you have broken into my laboratory with a stolen object, a stolen object that is priceless in value, and you expect me to indulge in your opinions?"

Rather than the man firing back, he took another moment to let peace settle before asking as calmly as ever. "You have A.I. in this time period?"

"What do you mean by 'this time period'?"

"Ask it about the condition of the sword."

"For what reason?" he asked. Dexter didn't fully comprehend what the man was trying to prove, and failed to see how an internet search would help prove his point. The sword was stolen, obviously; how would checking on it prove anything beneficial to him? If anything, it would help _his own_ argument, no?

"You must trust me." the man continued, asking with composure and tranquility, echoing in the lab with each word's reverberation. "I only ask that of you."

Dexter had every reason not to trust whoever this man was. He stole an ancient item of value, had the guts to send it here, and on top of that he had broken into his labe. He reasoned that any sort of story this man had to tell would be surreal and nonsensical. Yet, the man's generally temper-less attitude told a different story. He did not object, he did not try to interrupt. He only asked for someone willing to listen. It would have been unfair to refuse this stranger the benefit of the doubt, so Dexter obliged, and began opening his mind to suspicions.

"Computress?"

[Yes, Dexter?]

"Access recent news out of Japan. Specify keywords: "Yamashiro" and "blade""

[Accessing all Japanese media; search results defined: "Yamashiro" and "blade";]

The fierce and tense silence enveloped and possessed each side of the lab. The man's gaze did not go unfocused, almost as if he knew the outcome.

[Most recent news: loading results] Computress began, holding the girls and Dexter at the edge of tension, ["Reknowned inventor, physicist, and philanthropist Dr. Akira Moshimo has recently donated 10 million yen to the Japanese Historical Society, hoping to open research into the group's more ancient artifacts including: the Scrolls of Demongo, the Lost Kunai, and the **Yamashiro** Samurai **Blade**. The company thanked Moshimo for his generosity and service."]

Once Computress finished, everyone but the stranger was left in confusion. No news about the sword being stolen were reported. Everybody could connote the meaning of that: the sword by the man's side wasn't at all a theft.

"So it must be a replica..."

The man shook his head as he took the blade out a tiny bit, enough for the sword to shine from the reflected lights across the room. That was a dead ringer for Dexter to realize that the metal of the blade itself was authentic, too authentic to be some sort of copy. Skipping past the next 20 questions upon realizing that said questions would be pointless, as well as there being too much evidence to ignore, Dexter jumped to the most prevalent question circling in his mind.

"What do you call yourself?"

"My _name_ , is Jakku Yamashiro, slayer of the demon Aku, and the samurai that travelled through time once more to bring you a message of grave importance." the man proclaimed with a booming voice, overpowering all others in the lab. "If the work you conduct involves time travel, the information that rests with me will most certainly be helpful. So now I ask you to heed my message."

That...was an...unexpected tid-bit...

It was safe to say that everybody else in the lab shared that sentiment. To comprehend what this man was implying, that he was the Samurai, _the_ Samurai that defeated the world's most ancient evil, took a little longer to comprehend. Dexter's jaw flung open like a drawbridge, and the girl's eyes widened so much that they looked younger. Their verbal reactions were also shared.

"What?"

Yeah, that was reasonable.

Regardless of their seemingly doubtful response, they all knew they had no reason _not_ to believe the man. The attire fit, the reserved form of speaking was appropriate for someone like...well, a samurai, and his sudden appearance out of nowhere was the only thing that came as a slight surprise. Dexter, realizing how much he had disrespected the Samurai, paused before breaking the silence between them.

"What information do you mean?"

"I'm not sure of it much myself, but I only know that the portal which sent me here gave me...instructions. I believe these instructions...are for you."

Dexter was more than flabbergasted by this absolutely unforeseen turn of events. It was one thing already to have _the_ Samurai that defeated Aku to have travelled through time to meet him, but it was another thing entirely to see the most unlikely of events to shed some hope on a hopeless situation. Whatever the Samurai wanted to tell, it felt like no coincidence that his words would come soon after the engine's construction becoming a bust. Whatever this Samurai had to say, it must have had something to do with the disappearing antitelephone and the engine's failure. Whatever this Samurai wished to give, it would counter Dexter's purported failure to get the engine running properly. It would return the subject back to the present.

Too many words for joy circulated around Dexter's head, though he never dared to express them. Maybe there was a shot at this after all. Maybe there was a shot to bring Ben back home.

He could only hope that Ben was ready to come back. Who knew what kind of future he was sent to.

* * *

**THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V - HERO'S SQUARE**

It looked worse than Ben imagined. The island's chunks of ground were breaking off from the edges, falling faster and faster as the ground itself sank deeper and deeper into the sea of fusion matter. The planet in the sky was visibly getting closer and closer by the very second, its green, liquid surface now in a much larger view, setting on the horizon and stretching above Ben's own head. Everything was moving so fast, Ben knew he had to deal with this fusion quickly.

Moving quickly off the treehouse bridge and onto the shaking ground, he stumbled from the tremors that shook the island constantly. Ben managed to get back on his feet, and immediately faced a glance of the fusion's ravenous face. He was just lucky it couldn't notice him before he took cover. Hiding and crouching behind a fort of unused tires, Ben faced away to think what he could do. Surely if the fusion couldn't notice him immediately, it could have been distracted easily.

A plan came to mind within seconds: Ben decided to keep the fusion preoccupied with following loose trails, so he could bait and surprise it.

He thought it'd be fun. It'd only be his life at stake.

What else did he have to lose?

Jokes aside, Ben realized what he was doing, regardless of its strategy, was a dangerous thing to even attempt, especially with the fate of the world, and possibly the rest of the universe on his shoulders. But regardless of the risks, he knew it was the only way. His whole planet was depending on this chance.

He picked up the nearest stone by the tires, and quietly tossed it into the road, bouncing and clicking across the asphalt. The fusion immediately took notice, and was distracted enough to be facing opposite from Ben's gaze. He quickly ran towards the next fort and hid under. Glancing between two slits of vision, Ben made sure that Fusion Eduardo remained inattentive to him. Ben turned to his side to hide, thinking through the next step, and when he saw a standard-issue Lightning Gun sitting peacefully on the dead-grass, Ben took the chance and…fired it at one of the statues in Hero's Square?

Okay, what _wa_ _s_ he doing?

Whatever it was that Ben was doing, it got Fusion Eduardo's attention yet again. The statue being on the east end, the fusion jumped at an impressive speed to demolish the statue with the shot. The doppleganger was clearly aggravated, and was slowly but surely catching on to whatever game it was being fooled into. Ben returned to the first fort, and from there he slowly made his way to one of the benches of Hero's Square, hiding behind it. Getting closer and closer to Fusion Eduardo, Ben readied the Omnitrix to engage the enemy.

It was such a shame that Ben didn't notice that the Hero's Square benches were _wireframe_.

Outed by his own impulsiveness and obliviousness, the alien hero's eyes grew as wide as oranges when he realized his screw-up. Fusion Eduardo had finally found its culprit.

The beast charged with a juggernaut's speed and brutality, very nearly executing Ben with its giant horns, but only sending him flying into the wooden treehouse ramp, damaging it, and knocking him onto the swollen grass.

Clearly whatever Ben was going for didn't work. His body in full view of the alien predator slowly stomping towards him, Ben found himself in immediate struggle, trying to get back up, but something was wrong. He couldn't get up. His legs were fine, his arms were fine, and he wasn't in immense pain.

As he tried to lift his arm up, he found the cause of his problem. The fusion matter was sticking to him. It was trying to absorb him. Ben tried as hard as he could and with all the strength that he had to break free of the fusion ensnarement, only to Looking behind him, Ben saw Fusion Eduardo's hulking physique slowly begin to tower over him as it grew closer. It's hooves were shaking, as if its form was extremely hard to maintain. Ben took notice on how the fusion stared at him intently, its glowing eyes flickering not in power, but in weakness. Ben came to the conclusion that Fusion Eduardo was struggling to maintain its own energy. It was becoming unstable.

Regardless of that, it still had enough energy to exert a killing blow to Ben. That was all that mattered at the moment.

Ben, still stuck to the ground, attempted to pull out the battle-readied Omnitrix for a transformation, finding his arms becoming weaker. If he had let the green goo continue for any longer, he would have gotten infected soon enough. Exerting the last remaining bit of energy, Ben set the dial of the Omnitrix to Nanomech, pushing the watch down to transform.

Blue fur sprouted from the sides of his chest, extra eyes and 2 sets of arms evolved out of his body, his spine and height shifted and contorted until it adapted to its structure, and a single tail sprouted from his behind. Clearly, this was _not_ Nanomech.

Admittedly, Spider-Monkey wasn't as small as his original choice, but to Ben's glorious surprise, the shift in DNA temporarily repelled the fusion matter from his skin long enough for him to escape. Regardless of whatever alien he could have transformed into, Ben found a way out.

As Spider-Monkey, Ben backflipped over the fusion's head and with his spider-webs, dissolved Fusion Eduardo's horns. With another pair of arms, he jumped forward and kicked the fusion back-foot and square in its face. Doing another somersault, he jumped off the fusion's faux fur and kicked it forward, sending him back towards the remains of Hero's Square get into fighting position. Ben saw through all eight of his eyes how this fight was going to play out. He stood on his alien feet with all the courage left in the world. The statues behind him remained still, even as their concrete shattered like glass upon hitting pavement. The statues remained unable to escape their fate while Ben began to move forward, marching towards an unfair fight for the sake of others. His Arachnichimp-self snarled quietly as Fusion Eduardo climbed up from underneath the treehouse's island. Ben continued to take more steps, demanding a last stand from this fusion with a voice of bravery.

"You wanna kill these guys?!" Ben shouted with a fierce and almost vengeful intent. "You're gonna have. _To_ _go. Through._ ** _Me_**!"

The fusion proudly accepted Ben's challenge, snarling and roaring into the green skies, as if he was calling on his master's blessings. Throwing down his hooves and arms on the floor, the fusion doppleganger charged in, holding nothing back as usual. Ben began sprinting towards it, unusually holding nothing back.

As Spider-Monkey, Ben was able to dodge most of his adversaries attacks, swinging into the air and using the Hero's Square Monument as cover for the doppleganger's devastating drives against him. But nevertheless, Fusion Eduardo kept throwing curveballs Ben's way. It made no haste and pulled out a web of fusion-matter tentacles, sporatic in their movement, to tackle Ben from several different directions. From different angles, in different ways, with different amounts of tangibility. Ben was ambushed in the open. Some of these vines he didn't even see, and thus he was made vulnerable in several areas. He felt a blow to his back come out of nowhere, sending him flying to another direction.

Knowing the fight had to be kept contained, Ben made sure to pull Eduardo closer to him if the doppleganger threatened to move outside Hero's Square. It was no easy job, and was risking the fate of the world over this outlandish diversionary tactic.

Ben had jumped in, punching him square in the chest. Fusion Eduardo doubled over in pain, but then, to all but Ben's shock, sent the shock reverberating back, as if the force of the impact was sent the opposite way to blow Ben back again. Before he could regain his stance, the doppleganger jumped forward and smashed onto his ground, with Ben narrowly escaping its onslaught of a move. As Ben got into a defensive stance, with all six arms ready to pounce of the floor, the fusion regained its own stance. It gave a dark snarl and lunged once again for the alien hero. While the fusion did miss, Ben was thrown aside like a football, crashing with immense impact. It had stuck him so far into the wall that it took a few moments to get out. It was coming to him that Fusion Eduardo was adapting to Spider-Monkey's techniques, anticipating and reacting to moves that Ben only began to act out. Ben knew he had to change the game.

"Alright..." he murmured under his breath. "Maybe he needs to pick on someone your own size..."

Ben used his middle pair of hands to tap the hourglass on his chest, hoping to get something big. Luckily for him, he did. The fur regressed back into his skin, being replaced by reptilian scales. The skin went from navy blue to a mahogany brown. The lips of Spider-Monkey disappeared as it was replaced by an unusual, jagged shape that prevented him from talking normally. Until he would change to the next alien, it was grunts and roars only that would leave his mouth. Eyes disappeared, along with lips, the extra four arms, but the tail enlarged into a much more patterned look. Growing in great size, he made sure to ready himself, armoring up his body with more protective skales.

Fully battle ready as Humungosaur, Ben gave his own mighty _ROAR_ as Fusion Eduardo kept charging towards him, despite its loss of horns.

* * *

**SECTOR V - TIME LAB**

Sinking in like a punch to the jaw, Ben's words slowly but surely began to impact Mandark. The young scientist had enough time to think through their situation, and whatever Ben was doing out there, it did appear to be buying some time.

"You there." Mandark shouted, pointing at a random KND scientist. "What is your profession?"

"What?"

"What do you do here?"

"I'm a technician?"

"Understood. I am in need of assistance in terms of Ben's NanoCom communications."

The technician looked more than surprised. She looked flabbergasted. What would Mandark need a comm-relay for?

"If you are seriously wondering that, then Ben needs information regarding the fusion for combat. Does he not?"

It felt like a rainbow landed on a pot of gold. It was a once in a lifetime event that they wouldn't have ever expected to see.

Simon Astronomonov showing compassion. Would anybody have ever guessed?

But their universal luck was short-lived. A spark flew and their adjustments to the time machine began to unravel like a ball of yarn. After covering his face in protection, Mandark grasped the gravity of the situation, and found himself freaking out over this apparent misstep.

"No! NO!" Mandark said, rushing over to grab a wrench. This had to be fixed before Ben got back. Meddling with the circuits under great stress was never his strong suit, but he knew he had no other choice.

But perhaps here, he didn't need to wear it.

A pair of pudgy hands, gloved and ready to work their best, were already helping Mandark. The boy genius couldn't believe who it was.

"No, no, no! That's supposed to go here! I swear, you people have always been morons since the beginning of the war!" The guy said...

That guy being a healthy, and up-and-about Number Two.

"Here, I got it. You do other stuff!"

Heeding Two's instructions, Mandark proceeded to do 'other stuff'. The other stuff entailing his work with the comms channel. He simply couldn't have expected Two to come about so unexpectedly, and now they had two high-profile KND agents on their-

"Wait!" Otto shouted. "Where'd Five go?!"

Mandark and Two urgently jolted their heads a full ninety, both of them freezing at the lack of Number Five in site. The recovering operative kept his stare focused at the empty spot that Mandark viewed as well, petrified by Five's absence. Claustrophobic and anxious breathing threatened to leave Two's lungs, unable to comprehend the thought of Five being annihilated by that extremely powerful monster. But nothing could have been done, as Two had to focus his efforts back on the time machine, as did Mandark with the comms channel.

* * *

Ben made haste and used his Vaxasaurian build to bullet over to the wreckage, finding the fusion crushed under the rubble of the monument. Humungosaur was proving to be a good choice in terms of strength, managing to land so many more punches than Spider-Monkey could, and managing to send Fusion Eduardo flying into his own set of rubble. But Ben's celebration over the Omnitrix's protectionist programming was short-lived. Green ooze sept out of the tiny crevices, before retracting itself to return to its host. Ben, unable to express disappointment with words in this form, simply snarled at the quickly healing doppleganger. Kicking itself out of the rubble and slapping Ben's humungous size away like a fly, the beast roared in fury, crawling from other parts of the cobblestone, and jumping high into the air. Ben saw through Humungosaur's eyes and awed at Fusion Eduardo's soaring, realizing that the monster was trying to devastate the ground with a brutal attack.

He knew that he couldn't simply do the same, though. Humungosaur was hulk-like, but not in regards to the super-jump ability. There isn't any time left to think about this, he thought, refusing to think about this too hard and instead tapped the hourglass on his chest, turning him into Jetray. It may have not been Astrodactyl or Stinkfly, but it did the job just as fine.

Shooting a laser from his feet, Ben took to the green skies to tackle the Fusion. He could feel the energy charge up in his optic nerves, and wasted no time firing it aimlessly, hoping to have hit Fusion Eduardo with those laser beams. But the doppleganger was upredictable in its very nature, and and telekinetically sent a cloud of fusion matter at the alien hero. Narrowly avoiding that as well, Ben continued firing up his laser vision into the sky, attempting to still hit the ever-versatile doppleganger. But Fusion Eduardo had an ace up its sleeve. It had begun to dive into freefall, and moved towards Ben's position to tackle the Aerophibian down to Earth. The attempt was successful, and Ben was more than surprised by the fusion's strategy.

"Oh no." Ben whispered to himself as the fusion caught him off guard.

From that, the fusion made quick work of him and sent him rocketing down to the surface. Without any time to change back, Jetray was forced to feel the full pain of his descent and his large impact. Ben yelled the whole way down, and exclaimed in discomfort and even more pain when he landed. Weakly getting up, Ben left the crater he made and limped away, but this challenge wasn't done yet.

Up in the sky, the doppleganger accelerated in its descent, and this time, Ben was able to see it perfectly. Realizing what that impact of that speed would do, Ben started flapping his gliding arms like wings, attempting to outrun the inevitable destruction. But Ben was too late, as the fusion _CRASHED_ down like a thunderbolt in daylight, completely unexpected in its devastation. The once clean and even ground developed into a rocky and uneven surface, and several chunks of cobblestone flew into the air like crumpled-up paper, hitting and shooting Ben down once again as he tried to escape the impact radius.

It had caused such an impact on the surface that Ben reverted back to his human form. But surprisingly, it caused another thing to become offset.

 _"Ben, do you read me! We just experienced another shockwave, though this was unprecedented compared to its predecessors!"_ Mandark voiced from the other side. _"State your status; are you hurt?"_

"Are you actually talking?"

 _"He reads us!"_ Mandark exclaimed. _"Okay, we have information worth noting! Fusion Eduardo's energy is directly tied to his manipulation of the fusion matter around him! That's how he can siphon eruption attacks or control streams of fusion matter!"_

Quickly, Ben remembered what Mandark had said about eruption attacks. "Okay! What can I do?!"

 _"You can't avoid eruption attacks! No one can!"_ Ben thought it would be forever until he would hear that voice again.

"T-Two?!"

_"I know, back from the dead, yaddayaddayadda! Listen carefully, if you want to kill it, you need to use the Nanos to boost your power. If you want to slow it down, you need to keep cutting off its fusion matter support systems!"_

"Wait, how can I use Nanos?! I forgot!"

_"Ben, if you-"_

Mandark's instructions were unfortunately interrupted...because Fusion Eduardo had sent another punch to the alien hero's face, tossing him across the area like a ragdoll. Ben, realizing that Mandark didn't finish, pushed his earlobe, most likely to channel the nanites fueling that transmission to de-scramble the transmission. But to Ben's shock and disappointment, there was no transmission because he was cut off. All he got instead was a bloody finger and bleeding ears. Ben had reached his limits to the number of curveballs this damn fusion was throwing him. He wouldn't go down because of a brute monster like this. He had to keep fighting, and so he did.

"OH COME ON!" Ben shouted with frustration. "Can't I just catch a break for ONCE?!" He had begun running towards Fusion Eduardo as courageously as he did before, reaching for his watch. But Fusion Eduardo began learning; he lunged for Ben before he could reach for his Omnitrix, and punched him straight in the gut. Tossing aside the alien hero once again with extreme force, Ben knew he was growing weaker and weaker by the moment. He knew he had to keep fighting, but his efforts were growing more and more pointless. Fusion Eduardo was learning quickly, and was adapting to Ben's tactics just as well. Being so close to defeat, Ben knew he had to do something final, or else Eduardo would go to the scientists instead. But no matter how much he tried, he couldn't move, let alone stand.

But what happened next proved he didn't need to. He heard the sounds of rapid gunfire immediately overtake the dark growling of the fusion. It didn't stop for a full minute, and its timing was almost comedic in context. Once the bullets finally stopped, Ben managed to build up enough strength to lift himself up from the ground, despite the immediate pain he felt in his rib-cage. Regardless of that excruciating pain, he was able to see someone completely unexpected to be behind that assault. She sported the standard future-KND armor that covered most of her body, even her clothes, which itself looked like it was altered to be a second set of armor. The color-scheme of blue, white and gold remained ever-present here, and one iconic red gatsby cap to top it all off.

In all of that attire stood Number Five, holding out a rifle and a V-Charger, dual-wielding them for maximum damage towards the hulking fusion.

"YO!" She began as she moved forward slowly. "Getch'yo slimy _fake_ hooves offa that kid!" she proudly shouted as she readied the rifle again.

Ben couldn't believe it. What was Five trying to do?! He had this covered!

Yeah, no he didn't. Ben had to remind himself of the numerous cracked ribs he was shifting through. It was a miracle that he was even able to lift himself up.

"F-FIVE! GET OUTTA HERE!" he shouted. "THIS ISN'T SAFE!"

"Ben, SHUT THE HELL UP!" Five shouted back arrogantly, before turning back to the fusion, raising her gun for demonstration. "Now, _you_ got two options! One, I shoot you. Two, _I shoot you with contempt_! Which one'll it be, asshole?!"

Whatever the fusion had picked, it certainly wasn't understood by either hero, because all Fusion Eduardo had given in response was a loud and boisterous _ROAR_. Charging towards Number Five as he did to Ben, Five put her training to good use as she flawlessly avoided and dodged each attack or rush the fusion attempted. Almost immediately she began firing on the fusion and using every possible trick she knew to deliver the most critical attacks. Ben saw firsthand the damage she was dealing all on her own; Fusion Eduardo was beginning to lose its form, with its facial features blending into its fusion matter physiology. While that was happpening, Five ran to Ben, who was still literally grounded.

"Stick your arm out!" she asked suspiciously.

"W-why?"

As soon as Five got her hands on Ben's watch-hand, she found the appropriate dial, turned that dial to reach the right alien, and dropped his forearm back on the ground. The Omnitrix was still facing face-up, with the dial ready to be pushed. Five took a step back...

...and then she stepped on his wrist with a stomp. Ouch.

"AAAAAAHAHA!" Ben shouted in pain, " _The hell was that for_?!"

Just as he finished his sentence, another alien transformation had begun. While Number Five was unloading every bullet onto the doppleganger, Ben's entire body shrank down in height. His facial proportions shifted and compressed, becoming more obtuse than long, and his entire body was wrapped in a white jumpsuit-like material. Headphone-like bumps connected to veins formed around his stretched out head, and his eyes glowed a bright neon green. Having completed the transformation into Echo Echo, Ben knew the next step to be duplicating himself and creating a wall of sound. Based on his earlier deductions with the fusion's shaking and instability, he thought that it would be susceptible to high frequencies, possibly to overwhelm it.

"Thank me later!" Five said offhandedly as she returned to battle. As Echo Echo, Ben also got up faster to join the party.

Proceeding with that plan as intended, several duplicates began multiplying exponentially to surround the disoriented fusion. Each of the...Bens...had begun to use their ability to scream at supersonic frequencies, giving the Fusion more than enough to deal with. More of its appearance began to fade away, revealing nothing but the fusion beneath it. But the doppleganger continued struggling to maintain that form, managing to retain the bare minimum in its aesthetic. With the rapid gunfire from Number Five, and the wall of sound from Ben, it almost seemed like they were going to win.

But as always, the corrupted green brute had one final trick up its sleeve. Unable to bear the pressure and pain of the humans' offensive, the fusion slammed down its arms, calling to all the fusion matter it could draw to build up beneath its feet, and creating a massive beam of green energy to erupt from the ground.

Most of the Echo Echo clones were immediately disintegrated by the blast, while Ben and Number Five being knocked off their feet from the concussion of its shockwave. But they had no time to regain their strength, as Fusion Eduardo continued to lunge for them. Both of them immediately jumped back and ran in the opposite direction from the doppleganger, prompting a quick chase as well; a quick plan immediately sprang to mind, and Number Five exchanged looks with Ben for a possible strategy.

"Ben! Take a step back!" she suggested.

"I've got this, Five!"

"Take a step back for now!"

"Why?!" Surely Five didn't want him to be held back too, right?

" _Take a step back_! Then I'll be able to take it on from behind. You'll tackle it right on a bit after, got it?!"

A splash of relief overcame Ben, still refusing to give up on this fight. He was just glad that Five wasn't against that at all.

"RIGHT!" he shouted with exuberance.

Both of them halted in their tracks, surprising the fusion and rolling head first between its knees. Five flipped over and once again began shooting it, causing it to be pushed forward from its behind. Ben immediately did his part, and created five more clones to kick it backwards again. Once that was done, Five circled the fusion and kept firing. It was like there was no end to the amount of bullets she had.

Jumping behind a fort while Ben kept screaming at the fusion, Five extracted a weapon from her NanoCom. It was a bomb, resembling a large caliente pepper. Using this bomb to her advantage, she set it up and immediately threw it at their overwhelmed opponent.

It refused to fully stop the fusion, only making it become more and more furious. In its rage, two new horns were formed, growing unnaturally from the base of the fusion's surface.

Having to change his game again, Ben tapped the logo on his chest, hoping he could change into Swampfire, but instead changing him into Wildvine. He stretched his arms, each of them in unison, sprouting ever-growing vines that locked onto the fusion doppleganger like a bullseye. But it simply dodged all the attacks, as if it knew the moves all too well. The fusion decided to fight fire with fire, and sent back up the tentacles of fusion matter from earlier, this time emerging from various places in the ground. Now having plant life on his side (despite however little there was left of it), Ben somersaulted into the air to kick and punch the different tentacles, sending them back underground. This, in turn, prompted Ben to follow the glowing trail the moment he had landed, and when he caught up with the vines, he made haste and stomped his arm down into that area, forcefully severing the doppleganger's connection to its weapons.

Ben had thought for a split second that he would have gotten infected, only to remember what Mandark said about the Cosmix biochemical inside his nanites. Sighing in relief for a short second, he also failed to remember something else he could have used...though he still couldn't call to it.

Whatever it was, it couldn't have been as important as dodging Fusion Eduardo's attacks. The fusion had kept lunging and lunging. Ben knew that it was part of the strategy, though. It would have been necessary to keep Fusion Eduardo to keep expending its energy. Transforming back into his human form to conserve power, Ben made sure he had enough juice left in the Omnitrix for a few more transformations. Looking around and seeing Five practically being chased by the intimidating creature, he searched for a tool he could use to help out Five. Seeing a single rod or rebar amongst the scattered pavement, he quickly grabbed hold of it. It wasn't much...at all, but it would've worked for what he had to do. Running towards the fusion, he understood what he was now doing was the most risky thing of this entire battle. He just hoped it bought the scientists enough time to modify the time machine.

Five saw almost immediately what he was trying to do, and what was worse, she noticed Fusion Eduardo's expression change, as if its attention had finally focused on something. She came to the horrific realization that the fusion was aware of Ben's attempt to fight detransformed.

She couldn't let that happen.

She had to save him or else it was all over for Earth...and all over for him.

"Look out!" Five shouted, running as fast as she could. Whatever had kicked into her worked, because she managed to push Ben out of the way within seconds, preventing a much more gruesome end to the alien hero.

But nevertheless...the icky and excruciating sounds of stabbing were heard.

Each squish and tear in skin...but when Ben opened his eyes...he found himself without any injury.

But when he saw to his left where those sounds had came from...he had wished it to be him.

A gaping hole was now present in Five's abdomen, being filled by one of the fusion's newly created horns.

The fusion had adapted.

It had stabbed her through the gut.

She began coughing out a deep crimson substance that trickled down her chin. She was coughing up blood. The fusion released her, letting her slide off its horn slowly.

" _NNOOOOOOOO_!" Ben screamed in absolute horror. He wouldn't allow it! He refused for Five to perish so easily! He jumped in as quickly as possible to _finish_ this monster for good.

* * *

 **THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 -** **SECTOR V TREEHOUSE**

As usual for these parts of the Bellwood Suburbs, the day was a sunny picturesque that was perfect for any sort of fun. Number Three couldn't imagine any attacks happening on a day like this.

Oh her luck...

She received a strange and unexpected call from her NanoCom. It came from Hoagie of all people.

"Why're they callin' me from a NanoCom?" Three found herself asking. "Hey, Hoagie!"

_"Not now, Number Three!"_

"Oh...HEY NUMBER TWO!" Three cheerfully screamed into the Com. "What're you up to? Oh, uhm, did'ju hear about that new Fantastic Four movi-"

 _"NOT NOW, NUMBUH THREE!"_ One repeated for Two, and shouting into his NanoCom, startling the much more cheerful operative. _"Ready the sector into battle positions! I repeat! I need everyone at Sector V to be r_ _eadied the sector into battle positions!_ _!"_

"B-but I...uh, guys, you're not making sense-"

_"JUST DO IT!"_

_"Incoming!"_ shouted Four from the background sound, shocking Three thoroughly. Four continued to speak. _"Two! I need so-AACK-"_

The transmission feed had cut out. So much had happened within a single moment that she didn't know what she could do.

The only thing that could come to mind was to follow orders at the very least.

With a large breath, she finally began to say the five important words.

"Kids Next Door! BATTLE STATIONS!"

Those five key words were the cue to an embargo of chaos. People had begun running up and down, left to right. The entire sector was in complete chaos! It was so unsmooth and hectic that it disturbed Number Five, who was enjoying boring old sleep, until she got woken up by everything going on.

"Numbuh Three!" Five asked from above. "What the hell's happenin'?!"

"I don't know, Number Five! I just got a call from the boys on the Moonbase through my NanoCom and then they started freaking out about something!" Three shouted, clearly in a state of confusion and fear. "I'm not able to contact them back, and Four sounded like somethin' was attacking!"

Five didn't know what that could've been about, but it could've been a boy prank...then again, Number One wouldn't really approve of the entire sector going into overdrive for the sake of a prank. Five realized that whatever this had to be, it wasn't a joke. She put on her cap and set outside to join the preparation...whatever it was even for.

* * *

**SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

Buttercup was walking around in the busy lab after it having been made busy through some unexpected news. She had to admit to not seeing it coming herself. In the last hour, some samurai dude comes in and starts talking about all kinds of technology that could be used for the Synchronization Engine, something that was initially looking like it was completely impossible to complete and work out. Buttercup initially thought that maybe with a few punches and kicks, the machine would be running in no time...though that wasn't exactly an ideal thought. But there they were already, having managed and followed an unexpected opportunity.

Dexter was far too immersed in his work to be any sort of healthy. He put himself in charge of the hardware, meaning that he and Blossom were managing the heavy lifting and crafting or programing for the synch engine. Bubbles was the one working out the kinks with a manual control panel, and Buttercup could only imagine how well the latter was turning out.

But she herself didn't have much of a thing to do. She had just been kicking dust off the floor without aim. All she could do was just watch.

Then she found something rather interesting. The Samurai was calmly watching too. She couldn't figure out the guy at all. He had such a strange presence to him, one that carried wisdom and humility, two things Buttercup would never see coexisting or existing in herself. But aside from that...she just wanted to get to know the guy.

After all, he was a Samurai from the _Edo_ period who traveled to the future to talk about technology to a red-haired dude to probably same someone from an evil fate.

Boy, that'd make for a cool TV show, she thought.

Walking towards him, she couldn't introduce herself without just sounding rude, mainly because that was one of her main gimmicks. She knew to cut her inner bullcrap out and just greet.

"So...greetings from the future, am I right." Buttercup said...really awfully.

Why was she making this awkward, she asked herself. It wasn't like he was a date or anything. As far as Buttercup was concerned, she just wanted to know why he came here.

"So...uh...Mr...uh..." Buttercup stumbled to bring forth something to call the Samurai...it would be really weird to just keep calling him by his title the whole time.

"You may call me 'Jack' if you prefer to." the Samurai suggested to the Powerpuff Girl.

"Okay...Jack." Buttercup said hesitantly, "So you're a full-blown Samurai?"

"Jack" responded with a quaint nod.

"That same samurai that my history teacher won't shut up about?"

Another quaint nod. The guy clearly wasn't much of a talker.

"And you came here on a bus that you knew how to use...with cliffnotes for a time machine?"

The Samurai gave a single chuckle, and the most mysterious of grins. "It's an absurd world we live in." Jack admitted. "It is...certainly not the future I was once trapped in..."

Buttercup, noticing that the last part he said was rather somber, turned her head over to find him in deep thought. What surprised her was how far he looked in his daze. He seemed alone. It was one of those things that she found enigmatic about him. She had to reassure him, and she tried to do that to her best ability.

"If you're wondering if it'll work, then it'll work." she bluntly told him. "Aside from my sister and...well, my "dad", Dexter's apparently one of the smartest people around. Plus, judging from the starry look he gave those details, he's more than able to interpret all of this."

"I greatly appreciate your concern, Buttercup-chan."

"Oh god, no honorifics, dude." she protested. "I'll barf."

"My apologies, Buttercup." Jack corrected himself, "but...my past tells a more uncertain story..."

"Whaddya mean?"

Jack's deep and complicated gaze came to a peak when he began to uncover his reasons. "If I'm a well known legend, even to westerners, then I'm sure you are familiar with my story...but you are not familiar with what occured...after. I bore a betrothed, and as lovers we were to be married...until the ravages of time removed her from my life...and from all lives. No one could have seen it coming...and I should have prepared for it...all I could hope for was a brighter future to my home...in Ashi's name..."

Buttercup was beginning to understand piece by piece. "Ashi...was that her name?"

"Yes...I mourned her for weeks upon weeks...even years. I just felt...after so long of trying to show her a brighter world, it robs her of that life..." Jack said, trying to be as clear as possible, "the scar on my right side comes from a short time after her demise...a gang of insane Rōnin had raided my city...they questioned my faith and devotion, and they left a mark to remind me of my failure...this scar came from my confusion...I felt I could not live without her then...and I continue to struggle now..."

"How'd you stop the ronin?"

Unlike the other parts, Jack kept quiet for that one. It seemed like he almost refused to think about how he dealt with them, hiding an internal conscious behind a broken mirror. It was mind-boggling for Buttercup to be understanding almost all of this. Realizing the conversation was going south, she had to ask another question.

"How did that restore your faith in what we're doing now?"

"It didn't." He explained. "It only restored my compassion...even now, I question the faith I have in my actions. Should I have gone in earlier? Should I have let so many more families fall to their blades? I have lost faith not in what I believe in, Buttercup...I have lost faith...in what I, we, can accomplish..."

Even if his way of talking was...kinda hard to understand...Buttercup got the gist of what he wanted to tell her. He was unsure to put faith in his decision to return to the future, and he questioned these unexpecting decisions after his wife's death...Jack was holding himself responsible...

"Whatever the case...what's the point of life if you want to know what'll happen?" Buttercup offered, countering his point. "I'd just want to make my future for myself, y'know?"

Words failed to escape Jack's throat, though this time it was not in deep thought, but rather in deep realization. Buttercup didn't notice Jack's fascination with her thoughts. To refuse to be plagued by one's personal dilemmas was a worthy trait for a warrior. He came to think more and more about that as the believed it more.

Just then...another intrusion. Does Dexlabs have some kind of red target painted on its building somewhere?

The only thing different about this was that it came at an untold speed, cracking the wall and blowing several items away (though luckily not damaging the synch engine...somehow). The source behind the speed was a teenager. The kid had flaming red hair, and looked to be about the girls' age. His hair bore red highlights at the tip, looking eerily similar to a flame, with parts of his hair aligned into a mohawk, and the sides of his hair somewhat of a buzz cut. He wore a black shirt with a hazard symbol in the middle, with a federal blue short-sleeved dress shirt, green pants, and black shoes with a light gray trim.

At that moment, he looked extremely mad. He looked mad enough to turn the red highlights on his hair into actual flames.

"You've _got only one word and one second to explain why the hell this crap ain't wearing off!_ " he shouted in a huff, apparently tired. "S-sorry, hold on, I just - got stuck up at like 7 different police stations and the Canadian border...oh god..."

Whatever this attempt at humor was, it wasn't funny to Dexter. He simply focused on a more pressing matter...his intrusion.

"Who are you?" Blossom asked.

"May I pose a more relevant inquiry? HOW IN THE HOUDINI HELL DO YOU PEOPLE FIND YOUR WAY INTO MY LABORATORY?!"

"Come out and play, _evil sisters_ , I just wanna-" It took a few more moments for Johnny to notice the other guests in the laboratory. "Wait, who the hell are you jokers?"

"Language." Blossom and Jack said in unison.

"You wanna call us jokers again, buddy?" Buttercup said with a murderous glance.

"Look, I'm gonna wait here, until my sisters decide to show themselves. How about that?!"

Looking at Dexter, Buttercup could tell almost immediately what he was planning. Susan and Mary Test had already been sent back to Alberta. Johnny had pretty much just missed them. Dexter was looking to get this random kid out of his sight for the sake of peace in his workplace.

"What's your name?"

"Johnny Test?"

"Your sisters are on their...um...breakfast break. Wait in the conference room, and DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING!"

Moving again at superspeed, Johnny moved back out the way he came.

"Back to work." Dexter calmly suggested, before returning to just that.

* * *

 **THE FUTURE:** **FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V - HERO'S SQUARE**

Houses toppled. Cobblestone fell. More and more destruction crafted in its chaotic nature as Ben and Fusion Eduardo fought.

Ben was throwing every thing, every power, every skill he had ever learned through unbridled rage towards the emotionless brute. The barrage of attacks were certainly overwhelming the fusion, no matter the stress that was putting onto the Omnitrix's operating systems. He had transformed from Ben to Cannonbolt to Terraspin to Ditto to Upchuck, and they were only slightly slowing the fusion down.

Fusion Eduardo was relying on excess energy, as it was barely keeping together its form. The only thing that remained was its horns, which were unsurprisingly in perfect shape...and still had Number Five's stain of blood on it, along with some other bits of disgusting nature that Ben didn't wish to speculate on.

Because of the doppleganger's weakened state, it was easy to climb onto the horn and perform a closer attack. After Upchuck, Armodrillo came next, ramming his piston-powered fists continuously into the fusion's face. Shock-filled POWS came each time he brought his fists to its masquerade.

But whatever Ben was dealing wasn't enough. The fusion's weakened state proved to be a farce, as it was building up more and more energy and fusion matter to offer a counterattack.

And just like Ben, it was _very_ pissed off.

Grabbing hold of Ben's pistons, it bodyslammed Ben, tossing him around like a toy. Ben was slammed into the ground a good eleven times, his armored shell not doing much to protect him. Fusion Eduardo tossed him right back to square one, so much so that he got shifted out of his form.

Ben lay weakened on the cold pavement, expecting a quick death. But one did not come, as it appeared that the weakened state wasn't as farcical as it seemed. The fusion was taking its own time to rest. It had used too much energy at once. Ben could only smile about the fact that he was winning...barely. More ribs felt like they were broken, and it was getting harder and harder for him to stand up. He looked to Number Five, also back on square one, trying to keep herself going a little longer before bleeding out.

But there was more than that.

She looked like she was trying to say something to him.

"Use...the...NanoCom..." Five weakly said, trying to alert Ben of something.

Ben couldn't understand what that meant. "W-Whaddya mean?"

"You didn't collect four of those little guys for nothin', right?" Five said before coughing up another spoonful of blood. Ben, thinking faster than before, realized exactly what she had meant. "W-why didn't you use them earlier?" she asked. Ben found himself asking the same thing.

Pulling out the NanoCom from his jacket pocket, and noticing the three buttons of different colors. They were ordered as red, blue, and yellow, and knowing that he was a Cosmix type, he picked yellow for the best match.

And out came the most powerful surge of energy he had ever felt in his entire life.

It felt like his entire body was inexplicably rejuvenated. All the pain, all the broken ribs felt whole and painless again. It was like a painkiller only it actually did something useful!

Ben's mind and body were so fueled to the brim with energy that he couldn't describe it properly if he even tried...

He had to take a look to see who's Nano this was. He couldn't thank it eno-

Eddy SkipMcGee?

_Eddy SkipMcGee?_

Who knew that the toilet paper kid would be useful...

Regardless of what disgusting place the nano came from, he could feel its apparent effect fade away once its job was done. Charged back to full health just like a video game, Ben knew immediately to slam the Omnitrix down, knowing that Wildmutt could do some damage. Orange fur sprouted on all sides, eyes folded in, and once again, he couldn't speak. All the better for it, because he didn't feel like talking much. He only felt like ripping this fusion apart limb from limb!

Aggressively so, he charged with all his might to tackle the fusion face forward, sinking his now impervious teeth into the doppleganger's fusion matter body. The fusion's much more weakened state, and truthfully weakened state now, made Ben's attack all the more valuable. Having dealt a great deal to the fusion already, he stepped back to view his opponent.

Like Fusion Buttercup and Fusion Number Two before it, it was now violently losing its form and shape, its horns now extremely dulled out and less solid. Its eyes began to glow eerily as it once again charged towards Ben, ready to obliterate the alien hero. But Ben had enough of this. He was through with strategy, because it only let the opponent play a fair game. But this was never a fair game. Number Five was lying and dying on the hard and cold pavement, and Mandark and the KND were being put in constant danger from its destructive path. He switched nanos from the yellow node to the red node, going from Eddie to the Buttercup nano he had first got a couple of days ago. Activating its power, he once again surged in energy, and new exactly how he could use it. Transforming into Chromastone, Ben channeled every photon, every electron, any particle that the Crystalsapien's body could pick up...

...and he _fired_ every single one of them back. Every particle, every electron, every photon all rushed forward as fast as it could, and as _hard_ as it could to _eviscerate_ the damn fusion! It felt so good to Ben. He felt the need to keep firing, draining some of his own internal energy if he had to, he would _not_ let this fusion roam free any longer!

And finally, after so much fighting, Fusion Eduardo didn't just disperse into fusion matter, every single particle of it was broken down, including the fusion matter it was comprised of. Cosmix and Blastons had taken effect, making almost a perfect combo; it destroyed whatever there was to let it rebuild itself.

Ben collapsed in both relief and exhaustion. They had been fighting that thing for more than an hour. And until now, they hadn't gotten anywhere.

Before he could think anymore, a familiar sound arrived. One that he heard often as a kid, and when he was starting out with the Omnitrix. _The power-down sound._

Chromastone shifted back into Ben, and left the Plumber hourglass symbol on the watch a bright flashing red.

But that didn't matter to him immediately. "Five?" He said, trying to evoke a response from the fatally weak KND operative, "FIVE!" he shouted, running over to her to get her attention. He sat her head on his lap, cradling her in his trembling arms.

"Five, come on! We can get you to the medbay, we'll get you fixed up!" Ben said in a rush, trying to keep her from closing her eyes. "You don't have to die, okay? The fusion is dead, it's dead, Five!"

"Good..." she meakly stated as Ben slurred words together, trying to find something that could help her.

"Yeah...yeah, good! Don't worry 'bout this...uh..." Ben looked to the gaping and bleeding hole in her abdomen, which was loosing blood as fast as she was losing consciousness, "it-it-it's a flesh wound! It can be...fixed..."

"Buuulll..." Five kept saying. Her eyes began to get heavy, like when one has gone awake for too long. But this wasn't a matter of sleep, this was a matter of death, and Ben would not allow her to succumb to that state.

"Five? Five! Abby! Stay awake! Come on!"

"I-I'm here...still...not for long..." she said meekly.

Ben didn't know what to do, taking out his NanoCom again so he could do something "I-I'll call Mandark, I-" but Ben was stopped by Five, being grabbed by the hand with the NanoCom, and being kept stuck in a tight grip.

"P-Promise me, Ben...keep changing...keep fighting..." she said. "This future is... _what we make for ourselves_..."

Ben's eyes widened at that. That was what he had told Deedee...did Five listen in the whole time?

"So...keep making...betterrr..." she finally said...her body giving out and refusing to say more...her fingers loosened on Ben's arm...she gave out her last breath...her muscles relaxed...and her movement ceased like a statue.

Ben refused to believe it; he kept shaking her, screaming her codename, and her real name...

"Five? FIVE!" Ben shouted, trying to wake her up...

...but it was no use...

"FIVE! ABBY WAKE UP! ABBY!

She had died...and only he could mourn her.

"No..." he cried, holding her lifeless head closer to his, "no..."

He wanted to undo all of this...he wanted to make things right!

But he had already failed them...

Before he could do anymore, he felt something dreadful on the surface.

There was a rumble in the ground, far greater than even the shockwaves. It was small at first, tiny tremors that could have come from the fusion matter waves splashing against the island...and it continued to be that problem, as the splashes became louder as the rumbles and tremors became more and more violent. He looked over the green horizon, to find the waves beginning to splash over the edges, and mountains were beginning to crumble and let the fusion matter in...

It was a hard truth to accept, and a hard truth to realize.

Sector V had fallen.

To complement the unexpected, Ben's nanites in his ears apparently rebuilt themselves, and Mandark's voice rang through his mind.

_"bzzt-Ben...I know you must feel incorrigible. You feel that if you did more-bzzt-could have been avoided. I am fully aware of what it is that makes you think in such a way."_

Ben squinted as wind began to hit his face. The crashing waves of fusion matter were getting closer and closer.

 _"But as of this moment, the future is a doomed time. But you want to save us all, and if you go back...you_ can _."_ Mandark told him, _"_ _but we implore you, that to do so, you_ must _board the time machine before it's too late."_

Having finished listening to Mandark's resolve...Ben gave a few more thoughts to think about. He knew what Mandark was saying was true...but he also knew that he couldn't leave Number Five here like this. But...he needed to keep moving, and caressing a corpse wasn't going to help...

And that was why it hurt immensely to detach himself from Five's dead body and run as fast as he could back to the treehouse.

The fusion matter waves aggressively chased him, as if they had minds of their own, which was most likely the case. They crashed and obliterated the houses lined up on the streets, washing them clean off the surface of the ground like a stain off clothing. Ben had to run faster under that thought, realizing what would happen if he were to be wiped away so easily. He looked back constantly at his watch, hoping it wouldn't bail on him and just transform into XLR8 to get this business done faster. But unfortunately no such luck came.

But apparently, Ben didn't need it, as he managed to get to the plank between Sector V and the ground. As he boarded that plank, the fusion matter began to spill into the anti-gravity generator, not damaging it just yet. But what was interesting was how many times the waves kept trying to target the...oh...

The fusion matter was aiming for the plank. Ben was in the final stretch before taking a leap of faith as the plank broke under immense fusion pressure. He jumped as far as he could to make it to the floating treehouse...

...and he was more than happy to find that he succeeded. Feeling the grounding beneath him and catapulting himself forward, Ben quickly opened the door to the house leading to the tree, but not before taking a look back and regretting his decision to leave behind Five, and to have simply left her right in the attacking range of Fusion Eduardo. He hated himself so much for it...but he wouldn't let her down this time.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

They had finally wrapped up the building process, and it was time for Dexter to begin putting the machine in motion. This was their shot to finally retrieve the subject, something they had been spending the last two days focusing on. It was exciting for all of them, to say the very least.

Though there were some nuissances that just couldn't bear to miss it.

"Hey come on, man!" Johnny protested. "I don't get to even take a look?"

"Based on what your sisters have told me in painful detail and frustration, do understand as to why I don't want _you_ involved in this!"

"Yeah, I still don't get it! You're lettin' _them_ watch but not me?" he argued, angrily pointing at the two highly destructive people right next to the control panels in pink and blue.

"Take it like this, kid." Buttercup began. "What started this mess was a blonde sibling that pressed a single button because she wanted to. We're not gonna let that just repeat itself all over again!"

"Who's sayin' I'll touch something?!"

Buttercup had a deadpan expression on her face, believing the answer to be completely rhetorical. "EVERYBODY!"

As Buttercup hovered closer to watch Johnny, Dexter racewalked back and forth, catching Blossom on the computer working through various lines of code. Bubbles on the other hand was faring far worse. She seemed perplexed by the buttons in front of her, like they were taunting her for no apparent reason.

"What's the situation, Bubbles?"

"Talk about _multiple_ situations!" she replied. "I don't know which one of these to press without setting off another explosion!"

Buttercup shouted from the other end. "DON'T LET IT REPEAT ITSELF!"

"Right, Bubbles." Dexter began, losing time but managing to make it quick. "Perhaps you best be suited to more technical expertise and operations."

Swiveling a full 90 degrees, Bubble's face was a complete turnaround from her initial frustration to the joy she felt upon hearing those amazing words. Her pupils practically looked turned into giant stars. "You really mean it?!"

"Affirmative. Why would I not?"

"THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!" Bubbles happily shouted into Dexter's eardrum, racing over to help/overtake her sister in a furious blue light. Dexter could already see Bubbles interfering with the keyboards that Blossom was working on, sparking some playful banter between the two sisters. Turning his direction back to the hardware, he moved his joystick to carefully craft a new set of materials for the modifications that would be pivotal in its creation. As Jack was passing by, the boy called to him.

"Jack," Dexter called out, "I hope you are completely aware of what you've been suggesting to me for the last half 'n hour."

Jack kept the response to a quaint nod, followed by a quick silence between him and the boy genius. Jack was just as perplexed by these ideas. He had dealt with advanced technology before, and even had once adapted to it. But in the 50 years that were behind him, he could never truly know what the result could forebode. Technology was still a volatile and unpredictable field, and time travel was another complicated matter altogether. It could cause unforeseen consequences...

...but he recalled to what Buttercup had to say about unforeseen consequences. He knew that this was the only way to truly know if this would work. He followed his nod with a quick line. "I have faith in your work, Dexter."

"Thank you, sir." Dexter questioned.

Moving on, Jack could only think about how this plan would go. This future was an interesting one...it certainly was not the future he was once trapped in, and perhaps, it was all the better for it. He continued walking along the path to further survey the progress being made.

* * *

**LOCATION UNKNOWN - LAST LOCATION: KND MOONBASE**

The three in the S.C.A.M.P.E.R struggled greatly, having to fight off an unseen enemy. It felt like rocks hitting them on their own, but they knew the truth, they had to escape the spawns, and get the rest of the KND on high alert! It was their top priority. Even worse...they had just run out of fuel.

"We've run outta fuel, Numbuh One!" Four shouted behind him.

"I noticed! Numbuh Two, engage auxillary thrusters!"

"I'm trying! It's stuck!" Two responded, displaying an extreme level of fear and horror in his voice. The experienced pilot was pushing buttons like he had never touched them before. He was looking to survive and save his friends, and he knew that if none of the controls would work, then this was the only way.

But nothing worked. Just like earlier. Knowing that they would surely die if they had stayed, the operatives had initially thought of ejecting themselves out of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R escape pods. But that idea had come to a close when the spawns decided to jam their pods' eject function. They were trapped within their only means of escape, and the spawns managed to turn it into a race for survival.

Two realized that the thing just wasn't going to work with his tinkering, but he didn't know what could in these conditions. "Dammit, WORK!" he shouted in frustration, kicking the control panel repeatedly.

What was more surprising to One and Four wasn't Two's vulgar language, but instead the fact that the percussive maintenance _worked_.

All three of them flew off their seats as soon as those thrusters kicked in. They were on a direct course back to Earth, safe from whatever was attacking them. They all screamed in terror, anticipating a very unhappy landing.

"NOOOOOO! I DON'T WANNA GET SPACE-SICK!" Two shouted as they made their decent.

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

It felt like a relief to be back inside the time lab, and a stranger feeling to be thinking and admitting that. All of the scientists looked to him and saw a hero in their starry eyes. They all looked like they were grateful eternally, and Ben appreciated it. But then he saw something off-putting.

The monitor had been active the entire time...and Two could be clearly seen with tears dripping off the spaces in his goggles. Ben thought all of that through, and realized that if they saw his defeat of Fusion Eduardo, then they saw Five's death, and they saw Sector V...get flooded.

Were these people willing to die? Just as he was for them?

He looked to Otto, who had an extremely intent look. He was more ready to get back to the present than ever. But that wasn't of much concern to Ben.

Walking towards Number Two felt like a pain in each foot and gut. Ben didn't know what to say to him to make him feel any better...he was the last remaining member of Sector V...and once again he had to watch one of his loved ones die before his eyes. He couldn't imagine what that may have been like.

But Two had a different way of shrugging things off. He confronted Ben in a non-hostile way, his face begging for some kind of answer.

"What did she tell you?" He asked with the most somber voice Ben had ever heard.

Ben felt without a doubt that her lasts words should have been known, rather than just hidden away for no explicit reason.

"She told me to keep changing the future...she believed in me after everything that had happened to her..." he said, single tears streaming down on side of his face, while Two let go of his shoulder, still unable to accept this loss and only barely keeping it together.

A long pause overtook the lab once again, prompting Ben to ask the next question. They had to keep moving.

"So what's happening?"

"We found a few flaws in the operating system of the Engine, and Two was able to repair them." Mandark said. "That being said, we were unable to separate the engine from the machine itself."

"So its...gonna be a blind jump?"

"Affirmative...I'm sorry..."

Ben refused to think too much about it, just like earlier. He knew the risks, and he knew his responsibility. He had to do this one way or the other.

"Let's do it." he said with resolve, earning an affirmative nod from the boy genius himself.

The alien hero stepped up to the time capsule with proud and ready steps. Just before opening the door, Mandark had one last thing for him.

"Here's the updated hard drive," Mandark said, giving Ben the little USB. "hopefully with more useful information."

Ben gave a playful scoff, hoping to lighten the mood a little. "On what? Making the nanos more cute and cudly?"

Mandark immediately halted in his speech, flinching to that callback to what was arguably his worst moment.

"You are never gonna let that go, are you?"

"Well what did you think, genius?" Ben joked halfheartedly. Mandark, while not completely showing it, felt touched by the sentiment. He gave a small chuckle himself, though he had to hide with a couple of coughs to keep everyone's perception of him set. It was such a short time ago that Ben's quip had been used as an insult. But this wasn't a short time ago. This was now. They knew what they had to do.

But so did the fusions.

Another shockwave shook the Earth, this one being the worst of all. Not only did it rock the treehouse further, but this time...the rocking wouldn't stop.

Ben only barely made it into the capsule before the lab flipped _a full 90 degrees_. When the bunker landed, they expected there to be some destruction, but instead, it felt like they were floating. And a more sinister reason revealed itself quite quickly to them. Waves of fusion matter began sweeping the lab almost immediately. After it assimilated one scientist, the rest began to climb for their dear lives. They had no other option. Several of them were not finding the best of grips to keep themselves supported, and fell into the vat of the highly toxic alien substance, screaming all the way. Two was hanging on by a mere power cord, literally, and he was the one facing the time machine head on.

"Two!" Mandark shouted. "Start the sequencing!"

"Working on it!" the traumatized operative responded. "Almost there!"

"Hey!" Otto said, gesturing towards the head of Larry 3000. Two complied and tossed it over to him, much to Otto's shock. Luckily he was still able to catch it. Two moved himself over to the lever, and tried adjusting himself to avoid the rapidly rising pool of fusion matter out to get him. Mandark, making his own ascent, kept pointing to things that Two needed to do.

"Okay, start the-"

Before Mandark could say anything of importance, a keyboard from the back of the room hit him hard on the head. Disoriented, Mandark lost his grip...and fell into the bubbling and rising pit of fusion matter.

"Mandark!" Ben jumped up from his seat, pounding his fist against the capsule cockpit. He realized in the worst defeat that Mandark was meant to die this way...the future was still the same. Two had done nothing to change it.

"Ben, don't! The tachyons are still unstable! As long as you stay in place, there won't be any problems!" Two pleaded, now dangling by a mere lever. However, to Ben, losing Mandark was only more proof in his face that he was incapable of saving them. These people that he had known enough to understand...were now destined to die, and he couldn't do a damn thing about it.

Ben looked to his side to see Otto shaking with Larry's head tight in his grip. Otto glanced back at him with confusion, and once he looked to his right, he could see what was distracting Ben so much. There was a counter inside the machine; a black, digital clock that counted the seconds in crimson red.

On that clock, there were only 40 seconds remaining until the time machine would activate.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

Dexter looked in awe at the finished synchronization engine. It was so hard to imagine that he had felt so depressed and hopeless mere moments ago. These massive new adjustments were certainly going to help.

Looking behind him, he saw everyone's heads nod almost in unison. Blossom, Bubbles, Buttercup, and most importantly Jack. They were all giving their faith in Dexter, and Jack was allowing for this to happen, hoping for all the best.

"Let us hope that this works..." Dexter said, once and for all. Everybody in the room nodded a second time.

"Launching synchronization engine! Designating external connection to second plane." Dexter announced, and after the push of a lever to execute those actions, he moved over to an extra set of buttons. Like a conductor to an orchestra, they bent to his will as Dexter adjusted each setting accordingly and perfectly.

"Loading tachyon particle." He once again announced. "Initializing activation sequence. Time machine activation in 40 seconds!"

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

Ben's shock locked him in a horrified gaze to the pool of fusion matter slowly rising below him, while Two managed to get his feet to climb the floor parallel to him, grabbing a side of the Time Machine for support. There was still limited time, he could still make it!

"Dude, let me out! LET ME OUT!" Ben shouted behind the glass, meeting disappointment with Number Two's glance warning him not to. But at that point he didn't care. He couldn't let this mean nothing. "TWO, LET ME OUT NOW! I CAN SAVE YOU!"

Two only continued to shake his head. "Ben! You need to - ack!" Two stutters from losing his grip...for a single second, and hoistering himself back up. "Y-you need to brace yourself! You're g-gonna jump soon!"

31 seconds left.

"NO! I won't lose again!" he pushed even harder on the glass, futilely trying to open the door. He couldn't let Two die like this, especially after everything that had happened up until this point. He had to let him in. "This wasn't meant to happen!" he exclaimed, trying to reason with the operative.

19 seconds.

"It was, Ben...until you showed up." Two reassured calmly. "Thanks for comin' sooner than later...thanks for saving us as much as you could..."

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

"Initializing synchronized _time jump_!" Dexter shouted, trying to get his words to overtake the increasingly loud sound of the machine. "Un-launch in 10 seconds!"

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

Suddenly, Two noticed a much worse threat. The floor he was clinging to was beginning to break from the outside, each splinter of wood rocketing off the surface with immense pressure. He still held on to the plank, waiting for it to just break already. Ben kept trying to open the door, no matter how futile it was.

8 seconds.

While Two caught up to Ben, he realized that this would end his tale quickly. He didn't want to die, but he saw no other way to get this alien hero and this displaced time traveller back to their appropriate time. Ben, however much unwilling, knew this was the only way.

4 seconds.

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

"3 seconds!" Dexter announced. He grew more and more giddy to see if this would actually work.

* * *

 **THE FUTURE: FEBRUARY 6 - 2015 - SECTOR V** **TREEHOUSE - TIME LAB**

Otto began to freeze in motion, as if in a trance, just as the interior began to glow. The tachyons were beginning to activate, and Otto could feel every single one of them.

2 seconds.

Was there anything left for him to do? Could he have truly saved them?

1 second.

Or was this the end for them?

* * *

**THE PAST: MAY 26 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

"Zero."

* * *

 **THE** **FU-PAS - TIME UNDETERMINED - LOCATION UNDETERMINED.**

He wouldn't accept that, not even if it meant the end of the world. Because he knew he had to accept...the past was his present...and if he wanted to fully save these people, he would have to start there rather than here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEVELOPER'S JOURNAL: What We Make
> 
> S-see? I got it in within a...a month!
> 
> Hoo...ray...
> 
> I n-need soome sleep, goddamnit...
> 
> NEXT CHAPTER: The Time is Now...
> 
> -end transmission


	6. Chapter 6: The Time is Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold = Emphasis/Commentary
> 
> Italic = Emphasis/small memory moment
> 
> [] = Artificial Intelligence/Android Speech  
> ___
> 
> QUICK AUTHOR'S NOTE: Skip if you wanna get back to the story.
> 
> God I hate meeting deadlines...
> 
> But my apologies to everyone who's been following this story contently. I've had a rough two years since I last posted, having to dedicate enormous amounts of time towards my final years of high school and college applications. I got into a great college and I'm doing pretty well, and with my hiatus finally over I can dedicate a little more time to writing this. Another reason why it's taken me so long is because I've been rethinking a lot of elements concerning my approach to this story. At this point, I'm more concerned about getting the Cartoon Network Universe right; it was in the name, so the point is to make this feel like a larger universe as opposed to just the NPCs you know from the game. It's been a joy and a pain to refresh my knowledge on various mythos and mash them together in ways that don't contradict each other.
> 
> So, okay, if you were one of the unlucky souls who read the last chapter as soon as it came out, then you probably noticed the NUMEROUS gaps and errors that came with the chapter. I did not mean for that to happen, and I would have worked on it more...if I hadn't been committed to a school project for Africa's educational charity (as well as helping out a few kind families). Basically, I was under the pressure to finish this thing before my trip. It was half-assed through and through, and I have no idea how many plot corners I wrote myself into. It must have been a pain for you people to read initially, and I'm truly sorry for that...if there's a solution, then I'd probably ask you all to wait a few days or maybe hours before reading the new chapter, just for me to work out all the kinks and whatnot.
> 
> And unfortunately, this has been my longest hiatus...ever. And for what it's worth I hope the chapter lived up to your expectations. It's twice as long as my usual length, so I hope it's worth two years of content and waiting. The main aim of this chapter was/is to play up the stakes that I had tried to set up in the last two, and to wrap a neat-enough bow around everything so far in order to set up the events for the story later on. Though if I had one thing I found difficult, it was making this chapter feel like a beginning rather than a conclusion.
> 
> You might've also noticed that Nigel spells certain words differently. That's my way of conveying his English accent. I use the UK spellings for him. Also, I hope everyone were able to pick up the various references to other CN properties that were scattered throughout this chapter. I know you're probably wondering what the Nanite Event has to do with the Imaginary Friends, but luckily I have an answer coming up in a later chapter. Oh, and I managed to add in Bradley/Number Six in a hopefully organic manner.
> 
> And because I can see people asking about it, yes. Here in this story, General Specific from Sheep in the Big City and the General from Johnny Test are depicted as the same character. Thought it'd be a fun little thing to do for intertextuality. I also hope no one's being turned off by the further integration of the Johnny Test characters. It's just something that I've wanted to do for a while, but I promise that he won't be overshadowing anyone. This story is meant to spotlight everyone, and I don't intend to play favorites. If I do, it's up to you guys to keep me in line.
> 
> But that's for you to decide. So please...enjoy. And get some popcorn too. This one will be...very long.

**TIME UNDETERMINED - LOCATION UNDETERMINED**

Even after doing it twice, Ben couldn't describe the sensations of time travel. It was like being blinded by a circle of unrelenting lights, moving at speeds faster than the eye could see. He remained as calm as he could possibly be...but to stay still? Even that was nauseous. He was forced to clutch his chair with a bear's grip as more and more lights danced around him, blinding him in an overdose of beauty; he was again at a loss for words for what had literally happened in less than a minute. He had failed to save them all...and he couldn't help them anymore.

What Two had said earlier was further engrained in his memory. He didn't have to save them...but each part of Ben's mind objected to that.

Just as he did last time, Ben was beginning to think of something, something that he himself did not call to mind. But rather than a memory from a time not so long ago...it was something different.

He saw bits and pieces of it, the most he could properly see or visualize for extended periods of time were the ones he barely recognized. It was like that really old movie about 2001, except he was the one being thrown into an overwhelming amount of flashes. It wasn't exactly the best experience in the world, especially for Ben, and was only more nauseating as a result.

But each part of him could feel what was happening. And yet, he wasn't sure what time this even was. Was it past? Was it present? Was it the future?

It all felt so hazy that he couldn't make out what it was. Yet he could recall almost perfectly. Memories within memories that he never bore witness to memorizing.

What these visions gave him...felt odd...it felt odd in the way his mind thought of it. He found a greater sense of hope than he ever had before. But how could he have felt hope by what he couldn't even see or feel, let alone understand?

At this point, he could only hope to remember all of this. He had to. He tried grabbing onto that experience, or at least all the feelings he had when watching his own future play out. He needed some assurance that there would be a greater reason to fight in all of this.

This was his only chance...

* * *

**THE PRESENT:** **MAY 26 - 2014 - SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

Eyes widened, ears still recovering from shock, he sat up in a dizzy state. The world was spinning endlessly around him, and Ben was failing to recover. Luckily, his brain was doing the job for him. He opened his eyes wide open, hopefully to regain focus, and he did.

Feelings such as those were all too familiar to the alien hero, and the first time he felt it marked the beginning of his least favorite weekend ever. The weekend that made him sick to the stomach, the weekend that made him sacrifice others almost in vain, and the weekend that made him question his deepest thoughts about what he did, and how she was meant to do it.

Yeah, it was clear to him at that point that he absolutely hated that feeling. If he had to ever go time travelling again, he wouldn't be letting Dexter do it.

As his eyes began to refocus, he found himself in a white room, with lines of light flowing on the walls, almost looking like a circuit board. He was on a med-bed, a stretcher-like bed hovering over a blue seating. Next to him was a holographic heart-rate monitor; his vitals seemed good, beating as slow as he was processing everything, and compared to the nightmare from just a few hours ago, that definitely meant something to him. The sliding door was directly in front of him, remaining stationary. It didn't have giant claw marks on it, nor did it look dilapidated in any sort of way. He noticed himself lacking his jacket, finding it shortly by the juxtaposing bed.

But Ben turned his attention to the med-bed, something Dexlabs had produced to provide physical therapy to patients through the use of this substance nicknamed "Dextronium". The substance apparently could be processed into a vapor to be soaked by the mattress, which in turn would be processed by the body and activate it's true function: reorganizing damaged cells and stimulating growth in all sorts of areas in the body. Be it a broken arm or a case of the shingles, the med-bed was incredibly innovative in medical science, and could be applied to a variety of situations. Not to mention, it decreased the amount of time doctors had treating their patients, as the beds were doing a part of the job for them, thus allowing for lower medical billings and more people to get medical help.

He could feel his motor reflexes slowly becoming more active, allowing for him to move faster and less sluggishly. Though when he tried to get up, he felt a sharp pain in his lower back. He didn't remember hurting his back on the way here...unless Fusion Eduardo did more damage to him than he had thought. After all, the med-beds were used _before_ Mandark Industries discovered the nanite biochemical (which had activated prematurely for him due to the Omnitrix constantly changing his DNA and biology) and activated it for the rest of the public, so his nanites must have somehow been busted from his fight with Eduardo. Whatever the case, it was keeping him stuck to the bed.

Ben checked his surroundings one more time took that into account in regards to everything around him.

White walls?

Peace and quiet?

Actually functioning medical tech?

Those alone was enough to tell him the wonderful truth.

 _He made it back home_.

He was finally back in the past...or was it the present? Oh how did it even matter? He made it back home! Everything his future-friends fought for, everything they had done to get him safely back paid off in the end. They didn't die in vain, and they were far from being forgotten.

Despite that realization, Ben knew there was more to him just arriving back home. His job wasn't done just yet, and all of the people he had left back there still had one more job for him in their passing. He couldn't let them down. He failed them, but in death they couldn't rest in vain.

But Ben's mind got distracted by that notion. Why was he so...happy?

There had been something on his mind. Something happy, something hopeful.

He couldn't remember where that feeling came from for the life of him. Though the last thing he remembered was being sent back by the future Number Two, and the KND Treehouse flooding and sinking into the fusion matter sea. He remembered being...saddened by such a sight. How could he have been happy?

It was...haunting to say the least, as Ben began to wonder if he should have remembered, but he felt too happy for his future to think about what memories from the trip back he could have lost.

He placed all his hopes on his rediscovered optimism, as if he was putting the fate of the upcoming fight on this ineffable feeling. He knew what he had to do.

He wouldn't let them down.

At that point, all that needed to happen was for him to meet with his friends and inform them of Fuse's incoming onslaught. Thus, as one was audibly making his or her way to this hospital wing, Ben immediately saw his opportunity.

The sliding door opened up, revealing the boy who started this mess in the first place. Even though it seemed like he was covered in soot, he still wore that lab-coat with an open collar, with a black turtleneck beneath it, as well as the standard dress pants and shoes, and his black thick-rimmed goggle-like glasses. Dexter was using his holographic computer from his NanoCom, typing away on it and remaining undeterred by anything, thus it took a little longer for him to see Ben conscious.

He had the slightest expression of relief, one that was minuscule but unmistakable. Ben could see the quickest and most subtle gasp of surprise.

But those expressions were immediately overtaken by an unwavering maturity and formality. "Greetings, Ben." he began, walking toward the alien hero. "I see you have finally awoken. Are you alright?"

"Dex! Dude I-ack!" Ben exclaimed in joy, attempting to sit up only for the sharp pain in his back to kick in again. "A-ah...o-okay, just...y'know, sending hugs..." he said meekly, compensating for his handicap.

"Duly noted." The boy genius said, stoic as ever. "Do be careful. You sprained your thoracic vertebrae on your way here."

The sliding door closed behind Dexter as he put away his NanoCom to de-brief Ben. Ben always did like the sliding door thing. He never got over how many things Dexter contributed to society. He immediately thought back to what Mandark had to say about the nanites producing that biochemical, and how that could be used here. But if he was anything like how he would be at the evacuation of Tech Square in the future, Ben knew his unwillingness to fight wouldn't be contributing anything, so he had to make sure to tell him while he was still willing to listen.

But knowing he had to break his story to Dexter as slowly and as smoothly as possible, he couldn't start off with such a sensitive topic. He had to be slow, and he had to explain it piece by piece. "I don't remember hurting my back..." he started off, "you sure it was from the future?

"Yes." Dexter said, so fast it was almost suspicious. "Absolutely." he emphasized, only sounding _more_ suspicious.

"Okay," Ben said sluggishly, "wait, why're you covered in soot?"

"Ah, uh," Dexter paused, noticing his more disheveled look. His lab-coat was covered in scorch marks. "that information lack relevancy."

Ben looks back up at the ceiling, a smile beaming on his face in disbelief. "I can't believe it worked. We had to make a blind jump into the past!"

"It was not a blind jump." Dexter admitted, much to Ben's surprise. "The final message from Mandark was intercepted by someone else from farther in the past. He gave us the final set of instructions, and we were able to bring you directly back here."

That came as a surprise to the alien hero. He knew the final message would go somewhere, but he didn't expect the portal to swallow someone else whole.

"Okay...how long've I been out?"

"You have been unconscious for the past 6 hours. I would have expected there to be fatigue for the subject of the experiment, one that would most probably cede with several jumps. So, I conclude that you are beginning to grow used to the effects of time travel."

"That's good to hear...'cause your machine feels friggin' _terrible_..."

Dexter took the criticism without any negativity. This machine had been a plague to his schedules for the past two days, and he couldn't agree with Ben anymore than possible. Though unless "being out" also counted for the last two days of his disappearance, then that posed more of an issue. How was he going to tell his mother? Especially after the last time he had confronted her?

Though luckily for him, Ben did not arrive at that question just yet. He very much did not want another super-powered teen barraging him for another ambiguous reason. Ben then decided to ask the obvious question. "So...tell me...what happened while I was gone?"

There was a bit of a pause in the boy genius's thought. The way Ben had come back was...simply put...chaotic.

"Well..."

* * *

_It was safe to say that they weren't exactly expecting an explosion, and that was without the aid of Deedee. Whatever reaction they had pulled, it seemed to only barely work as sparks sent each of them flying across the room._

_Dexter managed to move his head enough to see the others. Jack was on his side, also managing to get up. Johnny was getting a dizzy head as the explosion sent him backed flat against the wall. The Powerpuff Girls, being themselves, remained unscratched and were already woken up; they were at work immediately in putting out some of the fires in the lab. There was a particularly large flame in the corner, and that took most of the girls' attention. But Dexter kept his eyes focused on the capsule; even though his glasses were blurred by the explosion's scorch marks, he could already tell that the machine was in complete wreckage._

_Fantastic, Dexter thought, the investors and the interns are going to love seeing how many things blew up in the research paper._

_Even more, considering that the previous machine hadn't had as large of an explosion as this one, Dexter could tell something was horribly wrong if_ Deedee _had managed to do less damage to his laboratory than him._

_He quickly activated his glasses' built-in windshield wipers, now being able to see something interesting. The opening door hatch to the capsule had blasted off its frame, and the moment Dexter heard movement and an arm clad in green climbing out, it was clear that the experiment was a success._

_Out came a slightly smoldering Ben Tennyson, catching the attention of everyone in the lab, including Jack and Johnny, who where still somewhat incapacitated from the shock-blast. He let out a large huff of air as if he had been holding it in for the longest time._

_"S-saved you..." he said before tumbling out of the capsule and falling flat on the floor._

_It almost looked like Dexter's glasses widened correspondingly with his eyes. He didn't know how to react. All their efforts from the last two days finally paid off. All his struggle, all that emotional abuse he unleashed on his sister, and Ben had finally made it back home. Dexter was too ecstatic to see this solution successfully solved that he completely forgot to thank the samurai who saved Ben's life, which under normal conditions would be something that he'd never forget. Ben lay flat on the floor, unconscious and exhausted._

_Dexter made haste in running to the unconscious subject, his friend, and turned him over. As he suspected, Ben was completely out, and smoldering too. But Dexter didn't care. What mattered at that point was getting him medical attention. He made one last turn to meet Jack's relaxed and relieved look, knowing he succeeded in this mission._

_But as Dexter turned around to exchange more pleased faces, three other faces were more furious than pleased, the opposite reaction of what Dexter had been expecting._

_"Wait..." Bubbles realized, looking to the unconscious time traveller with suspicion, "Is that..."_

_Blossom, upon seeing the true identity of the subject, let out a large disappointed sigh. "I knew it..." she muttered. "I knew it and I didn't say anything..."_

_"Ben 10? **BEN 10** **?!** " Buttercup screamed, very much enraged with the boy genius. It was slowly dawning on all three girls that the reason for their hectic weekend of fighting completely new and difficult villains was behind this entire incident._

_Dexter, being the one responsible for their troubles, could only think one thing in response as Buttercup was turning more and more red by the second._

_Oh no._

_Buttercup was huffing and puffing extremely loudly in her anger, almost ready to blow all of Dexlabs down with a single sniff. "You mean to tell me, that the last two days where we've had to fight random supervillains and aliens in another city, getting our butts handed to us and basically ruining our schedule altogether, because **YOU WERE THE ONE WHO THOUGHT IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO SEND A SUPERHERO ON A NEAR ONE-WAY TRIP?!** "_

_Dexter could only flinch at every word. He couldn't ignore the fact that...well...Buttercup was right...but he wouldn't let his ego be shattered so unceremoniously._

_"Well, technically it was never actually designed to be one-way-"_

_" **AH, SHUT UP!** " she shouted, sending her entire forearm back to rocket her fist towards Dexter's face._

_"BUTTERCUP, DON'T!" Blossom objected, flying in at superspeed to block her incoming punch. "You stop to think that maybe Dexter didn't want us finding out for this exact reason?!"_

_"What reason?!"_

_"The punching and the beating? You know, the thing we do to_ criminals _and the thing you're threatening to do to_ him _?" Blossom was trying to hold her guard against Buttercup's more aggressive personality; she couldn't condone any of her brutality just yet._

_"Fine, but why the heck is that any kind of friggin' excuse?!"_

_Blossom, rather than outwardly chastising her sister for her vulgarity, instead only shot a glare back at her, which found its way towards Dexter next. "I'm not totally saying it is." Those words felt like a stab in the heart for Dexter, but one that he didn't put much thought to, as he was focused too much on checking Ben's vitals. Blossom continued talking down Buttercup anyway, telling her about what needed to happen. "But Dexter has already admitted his guilt, and I can vouch for that. Judging him for the reason of having to save the day more than usual is pointless, and that's not even a priority right now. Now put the fist down."_

_Buttercup knew her sister all too well, and she knew how she was trying to approach this. There were several times when Buttercup outright hated her decisions...but it didn't mean she was always wrong._

_"Fine." she admitted, angrily freeing her arm of Blossom's grip and loosening her fingers._

_"Help?" yelled another voice from inside the capsule, catching everyone by surprise. To follow that, a_ _nother hand reached out of the capsule, equally smoldering, followed by a hand carrying a robotic helm. Surprisingly this kid was much more aware and unaffected by the improper time jump. One thing was already discernible by his first impression, or the fact that he was still conscious in comparison to Ben. It was discernible that this kid was used to time travelling._

_"Hey...my hair's back!" he exclaimed, ecstatic about something incredibly minor. (But wasn't his hair always there?) He looked over to his comatose partner, trying to get his attention. "Ben, look, my hair's back! Ben, where are you?" The kid didn't seem to care that everyone was staring at him with the most bewildered of looks._

_At that point, Dexter had given up in asking where all these random people were coming from._

_"Who is that?" Jack asked, not nearly as bewildered as his cohorts._

_"Not anyone commissioned by Dexlabs, that is for certain." Dexter said, then grabbing Ben by his underarms, lifting his torso up. "Jack, tend to the new guest. Computress! Get the medical ward ready!"_

_[I just did; Med-bed activated and charged - ready for use]_

_"Excellent! Now let's just-" Dexter would have finished, but he halted with the sad realization that Ben was too heavy for him to carry, let alone drag across the vinyl floor._ _He found it unfortunate, as everyone had noted his impressive growth spurt, yet somehow that didn't equate to actual strength._

_He tried picking him up from the arm, carrying him on his shoulder, but the boy genius lost balance...and Ben's comatose body tumbled down the platform stairs...landing on his back._

_The boy genius knew that would hurt the moment Ben would try to get back up; he had to cover that stuff up somehow._

_"Is someone strong willing to help me?"_

_Directing his attention and task to the girls seemed to be a wrong move. All three of them looked frustrated with Dexter, and why wouldn't they have? They had to deal with random foes from backgrounds they didn't even know, along with powers and abilities they weren't even used to, and it was hard enough to beat them. The urge to not punch Dexter for hiding the truth about his involvement in their predicament was just as hard, if not a little more difficult with their growing frustration._

_Dexter, realizing the three were a bit unwilling to help out, he had to motivate them somehow. "I asked for your help, not for your spite."_

_Flaring their nostrils, the girls gave up on their frustration with Dexter and hovered over to help him carry Ben to the ward._

* * *

"You didn't tell them it was me?"

"It was an impulsive decision, and your absence has caused a bit of panic in Bellwood, panic that the Powerpuff Girls have had to accept responsibility for."

"Yeah, but you'd only be telling _them_ , not everybody in Bellwood."

"I don't normally rely on impulses to make judgements. Logic seemed to be inapplicable at the time–"

"Because of your weird way of knowing." Ben interrupted. "Just saying...you need to open up more..."

With a chuckle, Dexter turned away and pinched his nose bridge, rubbing it a little bit and shifting his glasses upward. Taking a deep breath, he scratched his red-haired head with the tips of his purple gloves. Ben took notice immediately, recognizing the amount of stress the scientist probably underwent to bring him back to the present.

"You look tired. How much time were you spending trying to get me back?"

"It has been approximately 12 hours, and yet it does not _feel_ as quick as that actually is. It was far more stressful in the latter portion of that time period." he explained, as if he was settling down from a storm of frustration. "Amongst the many things that accumulated towards this point, including a time traveller and an interrogation at the hands of the three most terrifying girls on the planet, I had to call back all the scientists back to Dexlabs after I dismissed them in frustration."

"This all happened within the last 12 hours?"

Dexter gave an involuntary sigh. It only showed how beat down he was from all the stress surrounding him, and that he had to break his own character just to get some of that relief. "Again. It is far longer than one would make it out to be."

"Yeah..." Ben agreed, finding out quickly that this time period was as stressful as the future. Remembering to ask more and more, Ben widened his eyes at the thought of Otto, being unaware of his condition. "By the way..."

The boy genius, knowing exactly what Ben's next question would be, interrupted before he could say anymore. "Your companion was also found in the machine's interior, and he maintains a healthy condition. Years of time travel most likely made him more resistant to the feelings of nausea you are undergoing."

That was good to know. Otto didn't seem like someone who could adjust to situations normally, but apparently when involving time travel, it did not make a difference to him. Though Ben realized something even more relaxing. "Time travel...so he told you?" He expected Dexter to confirm that, with full knowledge of the invasion.

"Everything about where he came from, including the Time Squad..." Dexter began, getting Ben's hopes up, "but not what it was he was doing in the future you came from, or the details of it for that matter." he continued, making Ben's stomach drop with dread. The alien hero didn't have to be a boy genius to know what the next question would be.

"So...would you care to fulfill your end of our experiment?"

He didn't want to do this. He really didn't. He had been secretly hoping Otto would do it for him. When Dexter said that Otto was up and about, he was hoping that Otto would have filled them in, told them about Fuse, coordinated their plan to save the future...but now that responsibility fell right back onto him. "Yeah...I guess..." Ben said.

Why was he pausing? Why did he feel like he was shaking? Why was there a pressure around his non-watch wrist? This was what he had prepared to do, right? Save the world again? So why was he having so much trouble with it? It wasn't like he had much trouble before. So why did it feel like there was something holding him back? Was he still stuck in the future, did he want to save them no matter how impossible it was?

But why would that be a reason for keeping quiet?

"Well? Report." Dexter pressed, impatiently trying to force the answer out of a clearly traumatized hero.

"I-it's...hard to say, man. I...it...it's completely devastated..." Ben began, quivering in his voice, unable to form sentences properly, "not like a...desert...wasteland...devastated, but...this is nothing like I've faced before. Nothing like what even the Plumbers have faced before..."

"More importantly..." Dexter pressed, growing more irritated with Ben's fumbling. The arrogant inventor moved closer toward him, breaching Ben's comfort zone on purpose. He needed that information more than anything at the moment.

Ben, still being intimidated by someone shorter than him, just didn't get it. How could Dexter act so nonchalantly about something as urgent as this? Sure he hadn't said much of anything, but any sane or normal person would have picked up on the trauma Ben was showing here. But Ben knew he couldn't avoid it forever, but he also knew he couldn't forgive himself either. He just said the first thing that came to mind. "The time machine sent me into the end of an alien invasion."

Dexter seemed unfazed by that term. Invasion could have meant anything, but judging by Ben's expertise and area of work, it was most likely alien, and more importantly, similar to Otto Osworth's incomplete report. Despite that logic, he still had no reason to act in fear or shock. Alien invasions had happened many times before. What made this any different? "Clarify your words, I need brevity in your explanation." he demanded. "By 'end of invasion', what can you describe?"

The cautious hero let loose a breath of relief. He could practically feel more energy and motivation surging to his mind; he knew how to talk about it now. "Our...our side was losing...they were facing this threat that's been around since the beginning of time."

"How old?"

"It's a hyperbole, okay? From the sound of it though, I guessed it's been around for a long time." Ben clarified irritably. "They're called fusions...and they're led by someone...or something...calling themselves Fuse. These things assimilate and collect planets, and infect the environment with those giant-egg things from five years ago. _Terrafusers_."

That was a term that Ben used where Dexter did not have to demand an explanation for its meaning. He remembered that name as the same one he used for the mysterious green eggs that spawned those green chaotic creatures. The fact that Ben could recall them off the tip of his tongue with ease, and also a distinct tone of disgust, gave away which aliens Ben was even referring to...

...and Dexter was hesitant to accept it.

"Terrafusers?"

"Yeah."

"As in... _those_ terrafusers."

"Yeah."

"The ones from 5 years ago?"

"What other terrafusers _were_ there?"

"And they – producing the same weak creatures from 5 years ago – destroyed the world?"

"Yeah. Dex, they're so much more than green space tumors. They're these machines that the fusions use to infect the planet; the-they're trying to assimilate the entire world, and–" Ben would have continued...if he still had Dexter's attention.

In fact, the boy genius had turned away, shaking his head in the slightest as he typed away on his NanoCom.

"You're not nodding..." Ben said, coming to a nightmarish assumption, "why aren't you nodding?"

Dexter, being distracted enough, turned to face Ben. What was a cold indifference mere seconds ago had shifted to a concerning frown. Ben wasn't that familiar with his friend's...limited facial expressions...but the silence spoke and told enough.

Dexter was disappointed.

Dexter was doubtful.

"Does nodding seem to indicate my approval or conformation to your story?" Dexter affirmed. "I am simply analyzing the logistics of this situation. After all, the odds of a second invasion from aliens that last made their presence on this planet known a mere five years ago seems little _to none_ , am I wrong?"

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He wish he could hop back in the time machine and do it all over again. "W-What?! Are you-I-WHAT?! DUDE! I mean...the destroyed time machine? Mandark sounding really urgent? Otto had to have given _some_ kinda hint about what went down over there, right?"

"As I shall repeat, Otto made no hint regarding the details of the future you two came from." he repeated, slowly but surely growing more irritated with the conversation. "Furthermore, a destroyed time machine means nothing, as that happened from our side, and Mandark's urgency was most likely due to how uncertain the state and stay of the tachyonic antitelephones were."

"Fine, whatever, but you ever wonder why it was _Mandark_ of all people calling and not – I dunno – _you_?!" While it wasn't completely clear to Ben as to whether the boy genius considered such a thing, a pause in his breathing and the tiniest tilt in his head was telling.

Thinking to himself, Dexter recalled what Bubbles had told him mere hours earlier. It was a question he had meant to explore with better clarity, and during the exhausting task of linking two time machines, the question had simply slipped his mind. But now that he was coming back to it...

It was odd that he wasn't the one who sent Ben back, that he had already established. But more pieces began to fall out of line. If it was Mandark on the other side, then why was it so easy to initially link the two machines? Mandark had made his technology somewhat difficult to interface with his own, and the only way Dexter could conceive of that being simplified were if he was using his own technology. But what would convince Mandark to use Dexlabs technology?

An answer in his mind already sprung. Mandark Industries was not as known as Dexlabs for creating public technology; they were known for keeping their products secret in many cases. Most of their products were in service of their military contract, and were also a part of a deal that they had made with Dexlabs. Dexter and his friend had...very different ideologies when it came to the application of technology, as Dexter was less willing to sell or modify his patents for military use. So, Simon had arranged for the two to share patents, allowing for Dexter's ideas to be used by the military, though with Mandark Industries making specialized modifications exclusive only to them. Dexter had found that deal to be satisfying, and not only because his "Dexbots" could be differentiated from "Mandroids", but because there were military applications for his technology (no matter how much he hated it) and it would be a disservice to the military's efforts if they were to lack that technology and those applications.

With that in mind, Dexter turned to face Ben, ready to present his conclusion. "As you can most likely remember, Mandark Industries technology is volatile in its applications to the extent that even I, certified genius as I may be, have yet to comprehend how Simon programs and designs his products. Recall the 2009 incident and remember how I failed to deal with the Goat's Junkyard terrafuser due to a complication in Simon's modifications." He could see that Ben was losing him; the alien hero's kept squinting and frowning as he failed to comprehend where he was going with this. "I have not improved my skills with his technology yet. This most likely carried over into the future, so Mandark had to operate the controls while I built the time machine."

Ben remained in silent for an extended period of time, still trying to process what Dexter had explained. "Huh...that's actually accurate."

"Really?"

" **NO**! You were **dead**! You, the Powerpuff Girls, the KND – **DEAD**! Mandark was the one who had to _do_ everything, because you were **DEAD**!"

Well...Dexter certainly didn't expect...that reaction.

"Oh...I see. Well then, not to worry...I have prevented a future where Mandark turns evil and leaves me a pimple-infested slave at his beck-and-call...I can prevent this."

"N-NO! You can't prevent this if you keep doubting me!"

"I prevented your mother from melting down in the wake of your disappearance and withheld all information regarding your absence for a full 2 days. I am quite positive that I will be able to..." Dexter began to notice that Ben suddenly looked shook with shock. "What?" He couldn't comprehend what Ben was upset about. All he said was an analogy regarding his mothe-

Oh...that.

"You...didn't...tell...my Mom...that I was missing?!"

"Well...you did ask that I "open up" a little more often..."

"OPEN UP IN FRONT OF PEOPLE! NOT ME, YOU IDIOT!" Ben screamed. How could Dexter be so obtuse about this?! Looking back at Dexter, the only thing that seemed to hurt him was how he called him an 'idiot'. How could that have been the only thing that went through his head?! Just as he was furiously trying to untangle the web of strings and tangents that made up Dexter's mind, he realized something far worse. " _Oh god_...she's worried SICK!" Ben began trying to move out of bed, only to be frozen by the hot pain from his back.

Almost as if by mechanical command, Dexter came to keep Ben lying down. "Continue resting." he commanded...without the slightest sense of worry or conviction in his voice. "Right now, the thing you need to focus on is recovering from the...pressure of time travel."

"Ohgodohgodohgodohgodohgod..." Ben kept repeating, knowing his Mom would murderize him when he could get home...but would shower him with all her tears! He had been gone for _two days_ , and the last his Mom saw of him was when he was going out to meet a friend! He couldn't let her worry a second longer! "Tell me you told her something! ANYTHING! Sleepover? Out on patrol? Did you at least tell her I'm fine?!"

"I did not tell your mother anything. I did call her and let her that complications had occurred with the experiment but I never elaborated. I had only remained silent so as to quell any and all worries, as I knew about what your family has been going through for the past few months-"

At that point, Ben's anger flared up like the tokamak of a volcano. He had _had_ it with Dexter's understanding of his family. "Don't do that." Ben sternly scolded with a quiet rage, "don't bring _her_ up to make yourself sound like a good guy right now. Don't try to justify what you keep doing!"

"I...apologize about your...never mind...I am sorry..." Dexter admitted, trying to be as accommodating to his friend as possible, "but...what do you mean what I..."keep doing"?"

"You backed out of it in Tech Square, and you're backing out of it now! Then, like always, someone else'll get the blame for no good reason-"

"Ben!" Dexter shouted. "What is it that I do?"

In all of the pauses between the two at this point, this was the most uncomfortable. Both of them didn't know what to think. Ben's mind was fueling with all sorts of ways to keep firing at the cold scientist; he was more than angry for what Dexter had just revealed, and he had to tell him about the one thing that had been sitting in his mind for the last few hours.

"I met your sister in the future, Dex. She told me what you did after I time-jumped, how you screamed at her." Ben said, forcing the boy genius to stop in his tracks, finally shutting him up. "So I'm only gonna ask, why? Why'd you have to treat her like that?"

"H-How is that of any relevance now?" Dexter exclaimed. This went from mother to Tech Square to his sister really fast and unexpectedly. "My sister started this debacle, and has been starting such debacles for as long as I can remember. Surely you have had a family member with whom you have once had an antagonistic relationship?"

"Of course I did, but we didn't EMOTIONALLY ABUSE one another!"

"I meant to specify REPEATED CONDITIONS. Now, we can discuss my attitude towards family another time. I will return to the ward once I have evaluated your story _the scientific way_." he concluded, walking backwards and making his way to the door. Ben kept shouting, trying to get Dexter to put aside logic in this instance.

"Story?! I'm telling you the truth! I'm not lying, I swear!"

"Nor am I denying the possibility."

"Damnit, just ASK OTTO!"

"Who is to say I have not already?" Dexter told him.

He paused in disbelief. Ben recalled very clearly that Dexter said Otto reported nothing. If Dexter had already asked him...then that meant Otto already told him. "Y-You lied?"

"It was not with malicious intent. But frankly I have had two people today infiltrate my laboratory despite a _very_ recent software patch to my security systems, and neither of them were anything like my sister. I have every right to be suspicious about a story from the future, Ben. I needed to make sure it was the truth and nothing but." Dexter continued. "Personally, the conditions of this seem less than likely, but your report corroborates his. Either way, I need time to properly analyze your belongings; I cannot be sure about this unless I find scientific proof. Stay here and recover. Computress will notify you once the treatment has finished; then come out and talk; by then I will have analyzed everything."

"Dex, please. We don't have time for any of that! We have to act now!" he shouted across the ward, making the tactful scientist halt in his tracks. "I'm not going to let you throw this aside like this, please keep listening to me!"

Despite how hard he pleaded, the boy genius resumed moving away. He opened a hologram of a panel, sliding the door upwards for him to leave the room, leaving Ben in an even worse paralysis than his actual paralysis.

He had worked so hard to come back here. He had worked so hard to fight for a future that he cared about. He had worked so hard to fight for those people, all of whom were dead. He wanted to take this second chance seriously. But if Dexter didn't take it seriously...then how could he? How could he keep moving forward for the one thing that motivated him for the last few days if it was returned with skepticism?

His head dropped back onto the pillow in exhaust and defeat. He began to stare up aimlessly; from here, everything would play the same...he knew it...and he couldn't do anything.

* * *

**SECTOR V TREEHOUSE - EAST WING HANGAR**

"You sure we should leave our post, Number Five?" Number Three asked, feeling apprehensive about leaving her assigned post from Two. They were walking toward the S.C.A.M.P.E.R briskly, though Three was trying to catch up her fellow friend, lacking the pace Five had.

Five however, was much more confident about their stride, turning behind her to face Three while walking backwards. "C'mon, Numbuh Three. You know that Two would probably do the same."

"Yeah, Two's usually 'lax about this stuff, but One isn't. And you know how much _he_ likes to freak out."

"When has that been a problem?"

Three couldn't sneeze at that. Frankly, if they ever had issues with Number One, the best way to deal with him was to ignore him altogether. "Oh yeah! So where're we headed?" Three asked as Five boarded the shuttle.

"We can't go anywhere yet. Methinks we open a relay channel first." she told her fellow operative as she moved to the pilot's seat.

"But aren't the comms down?" Three asked as she sat down by the communications module, stopping herself just as she was about to activate the control panels. After all, they were a bit useless at that point.

But Three's partner seemingly had a solution ready. "Not the _NanoComs_." Five corrected, to which Three's eyes widened with realization and joy. Wally and Hoagie had been stuck in that kangaroo court for so many days that she was losing hope for their case. More realization flooded into her brain; they were contacting her through the NanoCom for those exact reasons. Moreover, whatever relay channel they needed could be provided by the NanoCom's faster and more efficient apps, and with the system that Two had implemented, they could also scan for any close-by KND frequencies.

Their rescue mission basically became much easier than it initially may have been.

"OH, I get it," Three realized, though if the relay system relied on a vicinity-scan, that would probably pose a problem, "but aren't they on the Moonbase?"

"Don't think so, Numbuh Five says somethin' else's up. They went from maintenance repair straight to BS Mode, and you said that they sounded terrified, so they're definitely not pullin' the other kind of BS on us. Anywho, 'cause o' that, they could be coming into the planet hot, right? What we gotta do is lock onto any KND markers within a – I dunno – worldwide radius." she inputed the command as she voiced her option.

"Heheheh...we can do that from our ship..."

"Providence don't got anythin' on us...well at least until they start noticing us on the NanoCom net." she admitted. "Okay, got a lock on them, so let's get going." Five said as she began turning up each of the controls, prepping for launch. Afterwords she remembered to set one final countermeasure for the Treehouse, shifting her cap further down her forehead before tapping around on her NanoCom and contacting Sector V's central command. "Numbuh Six! Do ya copy?"

_"AH-HUH? W-What's happenin'?!"_

"Oh yeah, we're using NanoComs now."

_"Cool! Wait, but then what happened to the–oh yeah..."_

"Two should be workin' on it." Five reassured, before moving onto her assignment for the rookie. "Anyway, you got the con while we're on re-con. You're in charge of the Sector 'till we're back, 'kay little buddy?"

_"O-okay, uh...wait, am I supposed to register that?"_

"Yeah?"

_"I...uh...I'm sorry, Numbuh Five...I kinda forgot how to do things...again."_

Five's palm slowly met her face when she heard that; Three could only giggle. Six, being fresh out of the Cadet Corps, had been constantly forgetting standard KND procedure, which was in no way helped by the fact that sometimes his...anthropomorphic characteristics tended to be...involuntary. It was an inconvenience that they didn't think about back when they first recruited him.

Three, feeling bad for Six, recalled something Two had told her before this mess, deciding to motivate him with that. "Ooh! Bradley, y'know those cybernetics you got? I think Two installed a memory into them. You can use that!"

 _"OH YEAH!"_ Six screamed into the comm; it was hard to remember sometimes that Six was the youngest operative in Sector V. Three and Five had grown more used to dealing with fellow teenagers and their voice pitches. It was tough for them to handle such a youthful (and sometimes even annoying) little kid. _"Sorry, Numbuh Five!_ _My robot things can be weird sometimes..."_

"It's okay, Bradley. You sure you can manage?"

 _"Y_ _ou c'n coun' on me!"_

"Sure thing." Five said mirthlessly. "Numbuh Five out."

_"Out 'n over! Err-wait, that's not–Bye, Kuki!"_

Three beamed with joy upon that goodbye. "See you later, Bradley!" She said as she turned off the call. She sighed in reminiscence. "They grow up so fast! Remember when he couldn't talk? SO CUTE!"

"Still can't believe Numbuh Five's trustin' a six-year old anthro-skunk..."

"Hey, he's the smartest skunk _I_ ever met." Three shot back.

"You're the one who recruited him, 'course _you're_ gonna be sympathetic!" Five argued as the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. began hovering out of the hangar gate.

"Didn't we name you god-mother?" They kept arguing, even as the shuttle blasted at its top speed.

"That didn't actually count, ya know!" Still arguing...

* * *

**SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

He knew Ben wouldn't be very jovial about his state of confinement, especially in regards to the aftermath of his journey to the future. Dexter heard a few more shouts from outside the door, Ben was unhappy with his reaction, if not furious or confused. But the hero had given up on shouting not too long after. The boy genius tried pushing it to the back of his head. As much as he would have preferred Ben to be in a less emotional and more content attitude, it wasn't his primary concern. With so many people already pressuring him with information, he had a lot to sort through, and at the moment, an alien invasion from the future was not one of those things just yet.

Jack had been facing the glass windows, stoically looking out into the luscious and advanced environment outside. Such technology was not new to him, of course; but Dexter could tell there was still some sense of fascination despite his experience. He could hypothesize that the future of Aku had technology very different in style and purpose compared to the world before him, most of which was meant to kill him. The legends stated in historical records did not provide a complete context into this evil future, allowing for only speculations on Dexter's part, but what was clear was a race of robots being sent out in flocks to kill Jack. Whatever it was, the Samurai was most likely tensed by such similar technology, no matter how much he had accepted it. It would certainly explain why he destroyed the two Dexbots upon arrival at Dexlabs.

Otto was semi-present, utilizing the lab around him to work on his own side-project. He wasn't with the group to confront Dexter, being too distracted to check on him. Dexter, in turn, was too preoccupied with Ben's condition to regard Otto's presence. The girls remained, though, and they still seemed a little aggravated, probably thanks in part to the boy genius himself. He shook it off, though. He was just happy they were willing to stay at all...and that he was very fortunate for this Monday to be a holiday for most schools in the Sister Cities. It was all the more reason for Dexter to appreciate how they were dealing with him, knowing that they had no obligation to be here anymore.

Even if they seemed a little...uncomfortable after the explosion.

"Ugh, I hate this stuff. What is it? Soot?" Blossom complained, aggressively rubbing her arms to the point of super-speed just to remove the scorch marks.

"I'm just surprised most of it got off easy..." Bubbles reasoned. Though she could only speak for herself, as her sisters both shot her an annoyed look while they were still covered in the marks.

Dexter was flattered that they were arguing about something so petty. But he still admired their dedication to him over the past few days.

Though not everyone initially present could be described that way. The only one who was missing from the group completely was Johnny, who finally got a _happy_ family reunion when Dexter had to call back the faculty for the lab, the Test sisters included. He was meeting with them at the far end of the lab, and it was noticeable to Dexter, even without modified glasses, that Johnny was fueling every last bit of rage and frustration he had into his two older siblings.

Finally moving on to more important things, Dexter walked forward and met with the girls; they had been patiently waiting for Dexter to return and evaluate Ben's story. Having watched and listened through the cameras, they had learned as much as Dexter from Ben. But they were more than displeased with how the "all-understanding-doctor" handled Ben's reaction. They knew they had to break that down to Dexter as slowly as possible, no matter how arrogant he would be about it.

Though Buttercup was a little more vocal in her distrust of Dexter. "Is that it? You're just gonna walk away from him?" she asked first.

Dexter ignored her, focusing on a more important reminder. "Jack."

"Yes?"

"Whenever you are available, Otto had previously requested that you meet with him soon. He requires your presence for his secret project."

Wait, that's not important at all...

"I understand. But how is...he?"

" _He_ remains in recovery; aside from the injury to his vertebrae, there appears to be no other signs of injury after waking up." he informed the group, bringing relief to everyone's minds. They had been worrying that he'd be stuck unconscious; kinda like something Otto called a 'time-coma'. When they had watched the video feed and saw his violent reaction, they had begun worrying something else was wrong with him. "He will be completely healed within the next 10.3 minutes."

Despite the news being great, Blossom still took issue with it, now knowing that Ben was effectively a missing-persons case, and they couldn't waste anymore time. "Is there any way you can make it go faster? The sooner we escort Ben back to Bellwood, the less anxious his Mom's gonna be."

Shouting from across the lab (and somehow hearing her words despite the distance), Johnny shouted back a retort. "Don't bother!" He was still venting his frustration out on his genius sisters. "Family can be a **_real_** _piece of work sometimes!_ "

"Language!" Blossom shouted back. How many more curses did this random teenager have to keep listing off before everyone invested would just leave? Blossom didn't even want to ask herself how long until she'd reach her limit with these swears. "Point is, Dex, you did confront her without telling her how or even where he was. She could be ripping out her own hair like right now."

While Dexter did give thought to Blossom's argument, it wouldn't be a suitable idea to improve Ben's health. "To address your initial inquiry, Blossom, there _does_ exist a way to fasten the med-bed's functions. However, the machine runs on a specialized Dextronium fuel-source; anymore input of that power source and its radiation could bleed through, leaving Ben in a _worse_ state than when he arrived here."

"Okay, but...we're not talking about kicking the machine into overdrive," Buttercup chimed in, that idiom causing Dexter to raise one eyebrow, "we can just raise it a little to have him come out at maybe...4 minutes?"

"I am familiar with the med-bed's idiosyncrasies, Buttercup. I am also familiar with Dextronium's volatility when used as a power source. It is something we cannot risk."

"Of course you know how risky Dextronium is. You patented the dang thing yourself!" she continued to emphasize. "So why'd you decide to use it as a power source?!" She had a point, and one that questioned Dexter's consideration of these careful details. But despite having a valid explanation, Dexter couldn't keep arguing, deciding to wrap thing up quickly. The boy genius knew he couldn't keep this conversation going for any longer. They had work to do.

"Simple, Buttercup. If I am the one _who patented it_ , then I am the one who knows best _how to_ _control it_. Therefore, I know the exact level in Dextronium where the quantity overtakes the quality, and such an error would be a risk not worth taking." Dexter reasoned.

Jack, who had stayed quiet since the two time travelers returned, offered to voice his own input to the three girls. "Though your voice is noble, we cannot rush Benjamin out of care without risking his life further. If this is the only way, then we must have patience in his recovery."

"Jack is correct. As of right now, our top priority is to analyze his report of the future he arrived from."

"Y'know, speaking of that story..." Bubbles began, "since he's giving you the exact story that Otto over there was rambling about, maybe you should consider this future to be a legit possibility?" She and everyone else were on the same page there, as they did feel Dexter's response to Ben's prophecy was nonchalant, perhaps _too_ nonchalant. They had gotten the impression that Dexter was disregarding the hero's story entirely, simply relying on logic when faced with the fantastic. It made as little sense to them as Deedee's continued break–ins. But Dexter appeared to disagree.

"Whoever said I doubted the possibility of a dystopia? I merely wanted to clarify the specificities of this situation." he said to explain himself, coming to the tempered surprise of the group. Dexter knew that he had made himself sound like the skeptic, much to Ben's vexation. This group's ever-growing frustration with Dexter's bluntness was also expected from the boy genius himself; like any mind similar to him, his mind worked like a game of chess, plotting each move with a sense of precision and care whilst expecting the outcome to be all the same. "Otto failed to elaborate on several elements of the story, such as these invaders' identities, or how the humans lost, due to what can only be described as a case of trauma. Ben suffered from a similar stress, but he moved past it to reveal these creatures' species. It is simply the likelihood of these...fusions returning after so long where I remain doubtful, let alone the probability of them returning more powerful than ever."

"Supervillains _always_ strike back, it's superhero–101."

"I fail to comprehend how these can be classified as "supervillains", Blossom. These are extraterrestrial beings acting upon a hive mind, that apparently possess a far greater threat-level than how we initially encountered them in 2009."

"Forgive me for my ignorance, but you mean to tell me that these aliens have invaded before?"

"Once before; five years ago, three of these "terrafusers" landed on the planet to spawn a set of creatures unlike many known alien lifeforms. I assume you understand the concept of extraterrestrial life?"

"Of course I do. But how were these any different?"

"They were composed of a gelatinous polymorphic substance and a variant of a protein chain that used ionized energy to act as a hive mind."

With such an apt and abridged explanation, Dexter would hope Jack would immediately understand, especially since Jack said he was familiar with life beyond Earth. However, the samurai seemed a little more lost than usual, trying to put a puzzle together with only half the pieces.

"I...see..." Jack slowly understood.

"And to think just _yesterday_ we were making a time machine." Bubbles added.

"So you're doubtful about this, and–well, yeah, I can see why. But you're not even gonna give his story a chance? Surely there's a...scientific way to figure out that these are the same aliens, just better, right?" Blossom asked. She hated it when everything about an enemy was unknown, even if they technically were known. Whatever they were discovering wasn't pointing to any clues, aside from the fact that they were dealing with the same aliens.

"Even if I find something to be doubtful, I spare no theory without going unchecked." Realizing that the others were understandably confused, Dexter held out his NanoCom to load up a datapad as if he expected others to understand immediately. "During his unconsciousness, I had processed Ben's racing jacket through one of our Scanning Electron Microscopes, as he implied he made physical contact with the invaders." he explained. "Therefore, there should theoretically be some residue to analyze and evaluate. If they are of the same composition as the substance, Ben's story would be validated."

A few more clicks on Dexter's keyboard seemed like all the system needed to run an analysis. Everyone, having known Dexter for five years, assumed he must have done the work beforehand, and just waiting for the right moment. What they also could see in him was Dexter always did partake in dramatics at certain times, probably to aid his already stubborn bravado. It wasn't annoying if he did it too much, but the girls always found it unnecessary.

But while they were unsurprised when the results towered over them on the massive monitor, they were more intrigued with how Dexter took it. As the accurate results indicated the presence of a familiar substance, he staggered back slowly, clearly shocked by the validation of their story. They all found it _hillarious_.

"Well, that...looks familiar..." Blossom rhetorically pointed out, crossing her arms and turning to face Dexter. He still looked petrified by the obvious, which was both like him and completely out of character for him. She loved it.

"It's unbelievable. Perhaps if we cross-reference with my personal database..."

So Dexter had moved his hands towards the keyboard. He had to cross-reference the sample with his database, and Computress identified a match before his hands even met the holographic keys.

[Match found; Sample = Catalog: 19234243-07152009]

"There must be...an...an inaccuracy that I should account for..." Dexter scrambled over the keys. Up until this point, he was trying his best to remain professional and logical about this report. But reality was sinking its teeth into his neck, and Dexter was growing more and more pale.

"This. Is going. **N** **owhere**." Buttercup said, emphasizing her words to drill the truth into Dexter's hardcase head. "That thing you're seeing on the screen isn't going anywhere _either_."

"LET. ME. FINISH. Buttercup!." Dexter rarely raised his voice to anybody, metahumans included. But there was more to science than just facing evidence, and he felt it would be wrong of himself to take a single certainty as the absolute possibility. "There are more aspects of research than just fiber and specimen samples that accumulate towards a proper conclusion!"

"Ah, con _clu_ sion, con _fus_ ion. You're not making this any easier for us to understand!"

She didn't agree with her sister on many things, but she could not bear with Dexter's stubbornness at that moment. "Alright, then. If traces of that green goop on Ben's jacket aren't convincing enough, then check this! A cetacean standing in Orchid Bay! You know how rare it is for there to be cetacean standings in Orchid Bay?" Blossom continued to argue. "Moreover, if what Ben's saying is true, the tiniest presence of fusion matter could pose a threat to Earth's environment! Just like five years ago, there'd be gravitational fluxes, steady increase of carbon monoxide, I dunno. If the terrafusers were meant to – y'know – _terraform_ the Earth, then other environmental aspects or ecologies are gonna start going out of control."

Dexter nodded hesitantly. "Computress, open up file: Domino Effect - Case 245."

A folder of links opened up, surprising the Powerpuff with multiple reports, apparently collected by Dexter, and all of which seemed out of the ordinary and happening en masse. She could feel her patience inching away. "Look at that! So you have been investigating these things! Mass bird migrations in clashing directions, power outages by the east coast, your OWN SATELLITE picking up unusual gravitational anomalies-"

"Regardless of what the Terrafusers are actually meant to, recall that the anomalies from the first encounter were at most very _minor_. For Planet Fusion, as Ben calls it, to be invading and causing more such anomalies on a larger scale, the fusions would have to have a much larger wavelength in order to pull this off, which in turn would mean that the invasion would be days from now."

"So what else could these things be from?"

"I assumed that was due to my experiments with the time machine, as well as Mandark's antitelephones."

"These things have been happening for the past two weeks! You've been working on this experiment for only two days!"

"I understand that, but you are confusing my skepticism with a lack of consideration. As you can see, Blossom, I have been well in-tune with this string of events. I am considering how this could be connected to some form of invasion. What I call into question is how the invaders have evolved." Even after the past two days of depression and self-doubt, Dexter still hated being proven wrong. Facing the facts with an unflattering face, he voiced his sense of doubt to hope one person could agree. "But Ben had described them as having decimated the world within mere _months_. The same creatures that were _easily_ defeated, by an assembly of _10_ _year olds_ nonetheless," Dexter emphasized that comparison to bring gravitas to his argument. He raised his voice as he continued, his mind entangling itself in the illogical nature of these phenomena, "are now _destined_ to be responsible for an alien devastation unlike the world has ever seen before. Do you now see my suspension of belief?"

"It's not what we remember, it's the fact that it's the same substance, and Ben and Otto's conditions line up with their reactions." Buttercup said, being uncharacteristically reasonable in this situation. "Be reasonable, dude. These things are back."

The boy genius turned away, hiding his own shame as he began to realize what part he had played in the last few days. But he still couldn't face the notion of Ben's story. He had worked so hard to move forward and do better, only to be faced with a returning threat from before that threatened to sabotage everything he worked for...and it would all collapse due to one of his very efforts to do better. He knew he wasn't being completely rational, but he couldn't deny his sense of guilt in the matter.

"I...I am still not ready to accept this as quickly as you all have..."

"Why? Because your sister's latest screw-up managed to save the world?"

Admittedly, Dexter thought, that _was_ one of the reasons.

But there was more to it than that. Dexter didn't doubt this possibility for the sole reason of being improbable, or the fact that his sister would have...technically saved the planet (moreso in three seconds than he could do with Dexlabs in three _years_ ). But this hurt him at his core, the part of him that was trying to benefit the world as best as he could. He had no way to measure the fusion threat, nor could he assume what technology would be needed to combat them. His connections were limited for the most part, and he had no way to band everyone together in this war. This knowledge only made him sink into depression; Dexter was beginning to believe all his work would become useless. "This is _not_ what this experiment was supposed to result with...I had decided to create the time machine in the hopes of advancing the world further...to do more. The machine was not just proof of our progress in technology or my skills as an inventor, it was proof of an assured future where we could do more. And now, all that machine stands for now is proof of an incoming devastation and an uncertain future where people _will_ lose their lives, where I cannot assume I will have enough resources or experience to prevent this from happening. I failed in doing more...and it will doom the human race."

While Dexter was mostly in tune with general logic, his arrogance had taken over here, and Blossom was almost shocked that he could put this on himself so easily. She knew him too well to be morally defeated as quickly as this. "Doom the human race? You're kidding, right? None of what's happened is your fault. Nothing about this experiment is going to _be_ your fault. I...I know that you've never liked being unsure of anything, and I know that you still want to know more and do more, but...well, maybe not knowing is our _best way_ of knowing."

"I...beg your pardon?"

"Think about it. We were working at a dead end when the vortexes disappeared; we had no idea that Jack would have the means to save Ben. Even more, Ben probably didn't meet a future version of himself because he'd been missing the entire time! Based on how he acted when he woke up, he probably went into that machine with zero guarantee that he'd even make it back."

"And yet, here he is." Buttercup finished her sister's sentence.

"Exactly." Blossom added. "We're not getting any idea of what's ahead, and – yeah, that does annoy me too – but every time so far where we haven't had a clue, it's usually to lead to something better. So don't make yourself the villain here because you're suddenly stressing over your upcoming _history test_."

"I don't go to sch-"

"You know what I mean, Dex." Blossom finished, but not before adding one final thing. "We may not know entirely what these fusions are gonna do when they come, or if this experiment will mean anything in the long run. But unless you move forward and expect the unexpected, then we're not gonna have any chance at winning this war."

"I–"

"That and you'd be missing out on one massive nostalgia blast."

"Not now, Buttercup." Blossom shushed immediately.

"What? It's true, these fights with returning baddies usually are."

Shrugging off her sister's sardonic sense of humor, Blossom quickly finished off her point. "So remember, step one in ALL of this...is in being proactive. We should listen to Ben. 'Know thy enemy', Dex?"

Oof, she just used Sun Tzu on him. Dexter had already gotten around to reading Art of War, and there wasn't a single philosophy in that book he hadn't looked over. But he didn't have any doubts about what it was supposed to mean, and at that point, Dexter had found his resolve. The best way to respond was to learn what these things are...but he still had some doubts as to how they should act.

Bubbles, however, remained a bit skeptical about all of this, and finally decided to voice her opinion. "Yeah, but...if the spawns we fought five years ago were basically...I dunno, scouts, then how can we even _know_ we'll be ready for the real ones?"

"Bubbles, we just talked about-"

"N-no, I'm serious, Blossom. Zeke Atmosphlyer didn't blow up the Space Fortress in Stellar Odyssey on a whim, he had a King-Wing ship and had co-ordinated with the other flyers. Yeah, it's a movie, but that part was accurate, right? And yeah, that IS 'know thy enemy'. But here, we're stepping into something completely out of our reach and level of understanding, only one of us actually knows anything useful about them, and Dexter just alienated him over his _own_ mistake." She pointed to the ward, where Ben was still lying, and let the silence overcome the room. "I never like playing the pessimist...but if he's gonna keep making choices like that, how can we be sure we'll be coordinated enough to even _fight_ these monsters?"

Even though the question was posed, no one, not even Dexter, wanted to put forth a guess. Whatever those creatures had evolved from since the 2009 incident were enough to strike fear into the cocky and confident Ben Tennyson, and based on what he had told them, it didn't sound like the typical invasion. But the intimidating evidence was already analyzed, burned into their minds like with a brand. But what sunk more to Dex was how quickly she called him out. She was known for being the joy and the laughter amongst her sisters, but also the most innocent. To see Bubbles chastise Dexter's flaw only worsened the gravity of the situation.

Quietly accepting that the dangerous truth was inescapable, Dexter moved forward towards the next logical course of action. "Anyhow, Bubbles, we cannot do anything at the moment. Right now, the government needs to know that a full-scale invasion is imminent."

"Yeah, I still don't get why we have to step back now," Buttercup expressed openly, dissatisfied with Dexter's disregard for metahuman powers, "besides. I'm feeling pretty nostalgic for some squishy beatings, especially since the Amoeba Boys disappeared."

Dexter couldn't believe Buttercup sometimes; they had just pondered on whether or not fighting these fusions in their true nature was going to be dangerous, and here she was immediately willing to jump into the danger. He could give a sigh at this point. He was getting tired of arguing with the girls, Buttercup especially. Blossom had her own ideas on the situation, though.

"Look, we can definitely let the military know about this, I'm not saying we shouldn't. But we have to be careful about breaking the situation down to them or they can act completely WHACK. This is the same military that turned Nevada into the middle of Nowhere, the same people that chased a sheep across the states for no good reason, and the same military that approved of Providence's Nanite project."

"Well...one of those three decisions have had phenomenal benefits in today's world."

"Right, because chasing a sheep is beneficial." she said sarcastically.

"I was referring to the Nanite event, Blossom."

"Not entirely beneficial, Dex. You know what it's done to the Imaginary Friends."

"We're working on that."

Sensing yet another argument brewing, Jack stepped in and confronted both of them. "Enough of this. Further arguments won't delay the inevitable outcome. There's a war coming, and it is our duty to extend our hands to help, or even take charge." The samurai then turned to face the boy genius, with an expression on his face that was much more calm and accepting, starkly contrasting the girls' concerned frowns. "You have built the most incredible technology, and it is us who can use our abilities to assist to fight back. But if I am to believe Blossom in regards to your military's...interesting antics, then this is a battle that they will be most inexperienced in. They will not have nearly as enough experience as we have to fight these creatures."

"Okay, so we should just, like, _text_ them about this invasion, even though they're gonna be completely useless."

"Yeah, but it's not like there's another readily available military organization that's just waiting to help out."

Once again, Bubbles was right. Who else would believe them? Who else even knew enough to consider the possibility?

"Unless we are considering some irrelevant third party, there is no logical or possible way that they can set up the numerous security systems or martial protocols for civilians. The aim is to keep the human race _alive_ , and third parties do not have sufficient access to the forms of protection we need."

"And yet, you're around, right?"

As Dexter raised an eyebrow, Buttercup knew she had to explain a bit more. "Like, I know you're against making weapons, but didn't you make stuff like Containment Shields? Couldn't you make more of that stuff and keep the people safe through that? Because if you're a third party, but if you _have_ something useful for the Providence knuckleheads, then obviously others would have similar things to offer, right?"

Just as he pondered on that thought...

 _**[RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!]** _

The alarms began blaring louder than ever before, nearly shattering everyone's eardrums. They all immediately clasped their ears in pain. Jack and the girls in particular were most disturbed by it. Jack, despite having 50 years of experience, never enjoyed loud sounds; daily meet-ups with the Scotsman had taught him well to avoid such annoying disturbances. The girls, on the other hand, had super-hearing.

Yeah, that must have been more painful for them above anybody else.

 _**[RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!]** _

Otto came running out of his hiding place, holding his hands against his ears too, stumbling on the floor as a welding mask from his head fell off. Obviously, this caught him by surprise as well. "WHY IS IT SO LOUD?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Buttercup yelled back.

"WELL WHAT IS IT?!" Blossom exclaimed to Dexter. All he was doing was covering his ears with his gloves. Whatever those gloves were doing, they appeared to be powerful enough to block the ultrasonic alarm.

"It appears to be a call from Professor-"

 _**[RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!]** _

"WHAT?!"

"I said it appears to be a call from Profe-"

 _**[RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!]** _

"SPEAK LOUDER!"

"IT IS THE PROFESSOR!" Dexter screamed, finally shouting. He moved to his desktop to respond, only to wince in pain when he removed his hands from the ears. He managed (with his elbows, the poor guy) to get Computress listen.

 _**[RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!]** _

[Is there a problem, Dexter?]

"TURN OFF THE ALARM AND ANSWER THE PROFESSOR'S CALL!"

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[Affirmati–Error: FaceTime update now available - do you accept?]

"Not now, Computress! Just do it already!"

 _**[RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRRRT!]** _

[Affirmative; beginning transmission]

 _**[RRRRRT!** _ _**RRRR** _ _**-** _ _**]** _

And finally...the alarm was silenced. Everyone was finally able to let go of their ears.

Bubbles was still a bit disturbed by it though, even after it stopped. "I can still hear it – Buttercup, I don't think he turned it off –"

"You're fine." Buttercup reassured to her sister as she picked and twisted at her own ear. She could still hear the ringing as well.

The alarm was loud enough to disturb the others in the lab. Johnny, finally deciding to make his presence known, ran over to the others in anger. "What the heck was _that_?!" Johnny exclaimed, having sped in front of Dexter, still picking at his own ear. He looked just as disturbed by the volume of the alarm. His question went unanswered as the call finally picked up.

Finally, the video feed came in, revealing Professor Utonium's delighted but clearly impatient face. His face broke into a smile when the feed came about on his end. But that smile turned upside down upon closer study of the image.

 _"Hello again, Dext–girls! Why are you covered in soot?"_ the Professor asked worryingly, breaking his calmer expression from before.

"We're fine, it's from the machine."

_"The machine's working? Oh, that's splendid! Is Dexter feeling better?"_

"Just tell us what it is, Professor."

_"Ah yes, I thought it might be of interest to you...five. Reports of some kind of crashed spaceship around Townsville Park. They've already called in Providence and are waiting on a response team."_

"Providence? Wouldn't this call for SECT?" Blossom questioned.

 _"It would have, normally, but people have reported catching glimpses of humans inside the ship."_ The Professor explained. _"But there's too much wreckage for the authorities to remove before they perish. They need your help."_

"Again...time machine? _Yesterday_?" Bubbles repeated. "Is no one gonna question the _absurdity_ of these last few days?!"

Of course they all ignored her. Frankly, enough weird stuff had happened within the last few days to discredit this single event as being the most absurd. Furthermore, a crashed ship was child's play to the Powerpuff Girls, whatever ship it was.

 _"But more importantly, this is what the spaceship looks like."_ The Professor finished as he pulled out his NanoCom, opening a holographic image in full color. The wrecked ship was covered in the dirt from its crater, but clearly had a green hull that looked dented and torn from the impact, with painted-red rockets loosely dangling on each side, and a set of broken windows in what appeared to be the front of the strange vehicle. The hull was covered in several scorch marks, especially around the front, but it hadn't dirtied the paint enough to blur the three letters painted on it. All three letters, and their font, stuck out in the girls' memories clearly.

"What's "KND"?"

Well, except Johnny.

Ignoring his confusion, Blossom had the most outward reaction to this alert, realizing who this ship belonged to and remembering her duties instantly. Her sisters followed soon after. "Yeah, they definitely need our help! Okay, girls, we gotta go!"

"Not yet, Blossom." Dexter calmly responded, causing the three to halt in their steps. He quickly moved towards the file cabinets underneath his desk. He had succeeded in catching their attention right before they could fly away, and he knew that they would need what he had to offer. Finding the right drawer, he tapped and activated another holographic display on the cabinet's glass finish, opening the section he needed. What he pulled out looked similar to NanoComs, but something was clearly different enough about them to make Dexter offer them to the girls.

"What's that?"

"Prototypes for an advanced NanoCom that didn't make it past marketing. They can collect specimen samples using a built in circular vile. If you get the chance, we could use some more samples. The residue on Ben's jacket is not nearly enough."

"That is if we come across any Fusions within the next few hours." Blossom muttered, doubting that outcome, but still preparing herself for what could happen. At this point, anything was a possibility. After all, it was fishy that this crash would happen just as they were unraveling the mystery of the Future. "How long have you had this?" She asked, wondering what the purpose of a meter for specimens would be for a NanoCom.

"A while. I kept it to myself and began using it to my advantage." Dexter responded, sounding slightly disappointed by his product's failure and limited production.

But that wasn't enough information for the pink Powerpuff. "Like what?"

"Such as what I am doing right now." Dexter explained with another tap on the tiny screen. "I just paired all three of your nervous-system nanites to Dexlabs systems. We shall be able to monitor your progress, record data, and inform you for battle."

As opposed to a quiet concurrence, Dexter instead was faced with aggravated glares. Buttercup's arms loosened from her initial cross, Bubbles' mouth slowly opened like a drawbridge, and Blossom widened her eyes in bewilderment.

It didn't make her a genius to address this move by Dexter. "T-THAT is a HUGE invasion of privacy-"

"We are on the clock." The scientist said bluntly. "If these are indeed those same creatures from 5 years ago that Ben and Otto speak of, let alone something far more powerful, having "eyes and ears" – as the expression goes – will certainly work to your advantage."

With a reluctant sigh, Blossom saw no other choice. This was the only way they could properly coordinate and beat the fusions at their own game.

"We're talking about this later." Blossom said, shaking her finger with minute contempt. Bubbles and Buttercup were already up in the air, shattering even more expensive windows. Blossom hovered up to join her sisters in the air, but not before Dexter told her something else before she left.

"One final thing."

"Yeah?"

"Remain vigilant." He said. "We have yet to determine how much these creatures have evolved since 5 years ago."

Blossom rolled her eyes ever so slightly. "Is that your best way to say 'stay safe'?" She said with a grin.

"Affirmative."

"Well that's...uh, genuine...yeah, we definitely need to work on your smalltalk...and your sense of personal space..." She said as she rocketed into the sky. She began focusing on the problem at hand immediately, and she knew that they had to get there before Providence could.

The Kids Next Door were in trouble.

* * *

**MID-AIR - APPROACHING TOWNSVILLE PARK**

"Number Five, I'm still not sure we'll be out of trouble!" Three told Five, hoping she would calm down with her disregard of authority. Usually Five didn't act so rebellious, and when she did it wasn't actively threatening to get others in trouble.

"It's a rescue op, Kuki! Numbuh Five ain't afraid of any trouble!"

"I know, I meant trouble from high command!"

"High command better kiss my boots after this one, 'cause we ain't leaving _anybody_ behind to die!" Five finished, leaning forward and recognizing that familiar cityscape.

The city of Townsville was just ahead, and with a densely populated area, Five knew they had to hide quickly. 2x4 tech hadn't advanced to make cloaking mechanisms for ships, which also served as a secondary reason for operating in space. Five began climbing up the sky, moving upwards even faster than if they dive-bombed downwards. Five, keeping her cool, didn't mind the sudden jump in the air, but her current partner was less than satisfied.

"Why do we keep _doing_ that?!" Three asked weakly. Every time they took that way it made her so queasy.

"Meh, it's fun?" she told Three, before a set of beeps alerted her back to the operation. "'Kay, we're comin' in on their lo...cation..." she slurred as she looked up and gazed beyond the glass screen. At that point, Five realized that they didn't need the tracker at all...because there was _smoke_ rising above the clouds. The black vapor was large enough to break through the white puffs of water below it, and continued to rise up from its point of origin.

At that point, Five ditched her NanoCom's tracker, and impulsively made the descent – or rather _drop_ – down.

"Wait, WAIT! ABBY WAAAIIIIIITTT!"

* * *

The metal that rested on him was almost searing Two, let alone cutting him in half. It took everything he had to even move his head a few centimeters to the right. Even then, he couldn't see much outside, but despite that limiting factor he could tell when people were taking pictures, and he kept feeling those bright flashes all around him. He didn't notice it at first, but he could also hear more clamoring and commotion from the outside of the hull.

It hit him almost immediately. They were surrounded by adults.

Adults with _NanoComs_.

They just exposed the organization's greatest secret. There was no going back at this point, as everything they had been doing in the last two days just went to waste. One thing was for sure though...

Number 274 was going to gut him like a fish.

But at least for now he was alive. He didn't know about One and Four, though, but how could they die so easily if he managed to survive?

Moreover, he felt it was nothing short of luck when the secondary propulsion rockets were able to cushion their fall by a little. It did reduce much of the damage, and otherwise they'd be very much dead, or worse he'd get massive cuts on his fingers (he'd never wish that fate on anybody, not even the Delightful Children). It was just not so lucky that those rockets shorted out soon after they reached city level.

But whatever happened to get them crashing to Earth (and luckily for them, closer to home _and_ within the states), he knew it wasn't over just yet.

Despite that inevitability, _their_ chances of 'not being over' seemed less likely...

Two continued trying to lift the metal, with what little muscle he had yet with what strength he had from his mass, the metal just would not budge. He tried pushing himself away from the He grew more frustrated as his continued tries only led to continued failures; the metal just would not budge.

He heard the sound of another S.C.A.M.P.E.R, accompanied by two girls shouting in realization; what it was that they realized, he couldn't tell. But he could hear someone trying to climb up the scrap-metal. Multiple stomps across the metal moved up and down; it was in frantic motion, as if the stomper was searching. Despite being blind to their position, the stomper made her voice heard in the vain attempt to gain their attention.

"Hang in there, guys!" she shouted reassuringly – but aimlessly – into the damaged hull, expecting a response from the only open hole. At that moment, disoriented or not, Two finally figured out who had come to his daring rescue.

But the better question was who was guarding Sector V?

He could hear Number Five trying to move some of the smaller bits of rubble, trying to get a visual. He heard a loud cough soon after, probably coming from the clouds of smoke to rise and blind her. He could tell that Five was still trying to move through, though unable to see them, and probably knowing that he couldn't see her. Though surely she could recognize his voice, even if the smoke was as helpful as the people surrounding the crash-site.

Two could tell though that the smoke was an even worse sign than it seemed. With smoke usually comes a fire, and if he ever payed attention in Chemistry class, he knew the longer he and the others stayed stuck, the more carbon monoxide would suffocate them. Or worse, the fire would find its way elsewhere and torch them alive. Not willing to go out so easily, Two made one more futile attempt to mode in spite of the massive hull weighing him down. But such movement, just as he collapsed back under the metal in fatigue, made him cough from the mere movement of his lungs.

Luckily, that was all it took to get Five to search in the right area.

He could hear more rummaging in the metal above him, along with several paces and footsteps. Five was trying and failing to find the three. Two knew to begin speaking. He had to if he wanted to be saved. His lungs still a bit weak from the smoke, he built up enough energy to start coughing again. The continued coughing was loud enough to signal her, and enough to let him speak.

"Hey...down here..." he shouted, drawing Five's attention further to the right spot.

"Numbuh Two! You're okay!" Five realized, shouting into the rubble blindly. "Ar-are you okay?"

Two, despite feigning sarcasm, was more than "I don't know...oh...well, one's thing's for sure though..."

"What? What's wrong?!"

"Whatever...little acrophobia I had...just got taken to new _heights_."

And with that, whatever tension and fear Five felt vanished. She turned around to inform Three. "Yep. He's okay!"

Three gave her own belated sigh before giggling a bit. "How okay are we talking?"

"Not sure, Three. He just made another bad pun."

"Worse than usual?"

"Eh, give or take." Five reported, the previous sense of dread almost completely escaping her.

Suddenly, an explosion of flames engulfed the back of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R's remains, expanding and growing larger at an immeasurable rate; and as if the dread hadn't even left her, Five was already panicking and stressing out.

"Hurry, Five, we're kinda getting... _pressed_ for time..."

"For god's sake, SHUT UP!" Five said while chuckling. She really wasn't appreciating how Two was joking while in imminent danger. "Three! Get the tow hook!" She shouted, to which Three nodded and returned to the undamaged S.C.A.M.P.E.R, readying the systems and preparing the shuttle's front hook to get that giant bed of metal off her friends.

"Hang tight, Numbuh Two!" Five told him through the rubble, her confidence slipping out of her like sand from a firm grip.

Two didn't really share her sense of worry, keeping himself entertained with the thing he was best at doing. "No time like your deathbed, right?" he asked with a sly smirk.

"Like that'll ever happen." Five murmured to herself, before focusing back on the metal. "C'mon, Two, work with us! Push up!"

"Whaddya think I've been tryin' to do-ACK! AAAGGH!" Two howled in pain, agonizing over something that was clearly interfering with a safe rescue, something that neither he nor they had expected. Five immediately let go of her grip upon hearing it. Recognizing where the pain was coming from, Two looked down and turned his head to the left, trying to find whatever was poking him too hard. The pain had felt like a knife-stab, though unlike the quickness and the shock of that, he could feel a much slower pain, as if it was digging further into his skin. Finally getting a visual, Two found the issue.

There was a piece of the wood floor that got itself caught in one of the hull's punctures. It was at a downward slope, so when Five had pushed up, it had lifted itself towards Two's abdomen, already puncturing the skin.

But they had no time to deal with it. The flames were getting larger, and the smoke was building up. One and Four were still unconscious by the opposite corners of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R's deck. Three was rushing to attach the tow hook to the metal, but without any visual of _where_ she could plant it, she was left in a terrified and frantic state of confusion.

"I can't find the others!" Three panicked. "I can't even find a good place to use this on!"

"Well hurry! Something's gonna stab me!" Two's distress didn't quell either.

"We can't do anything about that, Hoagie!" Five shouted back. "Gotta keep pushing! Come on!" She began again, grunting and grinding her teeth as Two tried keeping back the howls of pain. He squinted his eyes to the point where the eyelids overlapped each other, still trying to endure his injury. He kept pushing up. He pushed up as hard as he could.

But as Five took rest, so did he. The metal was just too heavy for either of them to lift. They were both panting.

Then he heard a thunderclap, which was...odd; it didn't look like it was going to rain.

"Five! What was that?" He asked blindly.

But Five herself was too distracted by whatever it was. "What the..."

"What? Are there more ships?!"

"Uh...no?"

Five was both relieved and disappointed at the actual help that had arrived; she had hoped that there would be at least another squad with any of their magnetic gadgetry, but that would have just deprived more sectors of their defenses. However, another squad would only undo their secrecy far more than it already had been. The help that arrived would definitely be more efficient...

But what kind of superhero _didn't_ report anything to the cops?

Five could see from miles away in the sky a brilliant pink light moving with a sonic boom, and hastily slowing down upon arrival. Her great strides of wind did the impossible and blew away the shards of shrapnel like they were stocks of styrofoam, moving wreckage off of his body as if the metal were mere tissue napkins; Two stared at the remains of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R that he had once been trapped under, absolutely dumbfounded. Dumbfounded to the point where he didn't realize that he was being lifted up in the air.

He just got saved...by the Powerpuff Girls.

And he...was having deja vu.

Blossom, commander and leader, didn't bother waiting to talk to him. Meeting people who she hadn't met in a long time always did make her feel unusually joyful. "Hey there, Hoagie!" Blossom greeted cheerfully, "'This sure does feel familiar, don't it?"

"A-Are there still three of you?"

"Always." she said reassuringly, continuing to bear an extremely positive smile, calm as ever even as her two sisters zoomed right past her at their top speed. Two, feeling the gusts of wind from their mere arrival, had to protect his face from being ripped off. He did not, however, remain in one place as the force of their speed and wind was enough to carry his entire body upwards. He squealed in fear accordingly.

"EEP!" He squealed as he was mid-air, "HOLY HELL..."

"Relax, I've still got you." Blossom reassured. Hovering a little longer to wait for her sisters, Blossom slowly made her descent onto the ground, letting go of Two as gently as possible so as not to drop him from a dangerous height. "'Kay, gotta go now!" She ran with her great speed to help her sisters, with Two hearing the distinct sounds of laser-vision and metal creaking, as well as seeing a gust of frosty air extinguish the growing fire at the ship's caboose.

And like that, Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup ran outside at the same speed, carrying Number Four and Number One unconscious on their backs. They set the two operatives down, revealing the damage the crash had done to them, aside from the multiple scorch marks and somewhat-burnt clothing. Number Three dropped the tow hook immediately and rushed with a ready med-kit, examining their commanding officer closely. One suffered a massive gash on his bicep, with his kevlar tactical vest protecting his chest from any external harm. It was rather surprising that One would be so lucky as to come out with only a gash on his-

"Be careful with him, he's got 3 broken ribs: 1 on his left side around his collarbone, and 2 around this area," Bubbles advised to Three, using her X-Ray vision.

Oh...so, _not_ , then...

Number Four, on the other hand, appeared to be bleeding from the head, and when Buttercup opened his eyes, the irritated and warm-red sclera in his eyes made it clear that Four was suffering from a concussion. He had to hand it to Wally, though. Imagine surviving a crash landing from space and only coming out with a concussion. Knowing what to do without any prompting, Buttercup rushed to the S.C.A.M.P.E.R to drop him off. Remembering all those times that her sisters told her to measure her strength, Buttercup slowly laid him down on the oakwood floor of the deck. Using her own X-Ray vision, she looked out for any internal damage in Four that would be of concern. Luckily for Wally, there were no issues compared to One's.

As the Powerpuff Girls were making quick work of the situation, Five stood there just as dumbfounded. While she had seen the girls before on television, she found herself speechless when the long forgotten memories flooded back into her brain. When Blossom went to greet her, Five beat her to it. "Um...hi?" She began awkwardly, unsure of how to greet them after staying mostly separate after so many years. They had a few encounters here and there, but direct involvement? Barely. Five began to wonder why they had stayed separate for so long, especially since they not only were so much closer, but the girls were giving real adult criminals a good reason not to mess with kids. They could have teamed up in so many battles from the last 5 years.

"Yeah, we missed you too...though we did kinda forget you existed. Sorry about that..." the pink Powerpuff admitted with candor and humility, "and yeah, this _is_ a bit of a coincidence."

Buttercup, however, was a little more unsatisfied with that small-talk. "Hey, how'd they get here before us?! Aren't we supposed to be faster than a bullet?!"

" _Speeding_ bullet, yeah," said Blossom, correcting Buttercup for the umpteenth time (the number of times she forgot the right jargon for this stuff baffled her), "but that's not important right now."

"And not comin' faster isn't?" Five retorted, much to Buttercup's silent temper, before going into her explanation. "We got a security breach in the KND, and our entire communications system's gettin' taken out. So we switched to these NanoComs, and next thing you know these guys're screaming in terror about some kinda danger. They ordered us to put the entire Sector into lockdown."

"So why...aren't...YOU there, Numbuh Five!?"

All of them turned around in surprise, finding the once comatose Number One to be regaining consciousness. His head tilted up, and he groaned from his previous unconsciousness and "minor" injuries. Although that didn't stop him from overreacting to Five's disregard of orders. "We ordered you to protect the treehouse!"

"Right, 'cause rescue hasn't ever been a big deal before!" Five protested angrily, treating One's recovery as nothing out of the ordinary. She would never get used to One's devout following of KND protocol. Frankly, she thought that if everything in the KND was going to go 'by the book', they might as well have surrendered to those rule-fixated adults.

"So who's handling the Sector?"

"Numbuh Six..." she revealed, only evoking a horrified face from One, "I...gave the kid a shot..."

"So you though it would be a good idea to let _Bradley_ take command of the entirety of Sector V?"

"Well...'was more like the Treehouse than the Sector...when we were tellin' him anyway." Five admitted. "Besides, would Numbuh Five do somethin' so stupid... _without_ thinkin' 'bout it herself?"

* * *

**SECTOR V TREEHOUSE - COMMAND CENTER**

"OUR WEAPONS ARE USELESS! GAS MASKS ARE COMPROMISED! I CAN'T...MAKE...CONTACT...EUAACK!"

"I CAN'T FEEL MY NOSE! THE SPRAY TOOK AWAY MY _NOSE_!"

"WHO THE HELL LEFT THAT DANG SKUNK IN CHARGE ANYWAY?!"

* * *

Five hated lying. She wasn't anymore confident in her decision than One was. Any break in her coolness, though, and she'd be skinned for her lapse in judgement. "Honestly, Numbuh One, your faith in the lil' guy is the size of a god-dang _bean_." she said with butterflies in her stomach. She knew that when they'd get back to the treehouse, they'd only be coming back to Six's mess, and One would probably still have Five's head.

"Figures..." Two retorted, genuinely agreeing with Five's words.

"For good reason, Numbuh Five!" One retorted.

"You take that back about Bradley!"

"Numbuh Three, we have been OVER this–"

"'Over this' my oversized mecha!"

As the Kids Next Door kept on arguing, the Powerpuff Girls watched from afar with a raised eyebrow. They concurred on the stance that, because they were sisters, there was an art to bickering. But their bickering wasn't even impressive, it was just getting tedious.

"Do we ever fight this much?"

Slowly, Blossom and Bubbles turned to face their sister, both of them raising an eyebrow and baring glares of disbelief, as if it needed to be said that Buttercup was flat out lying about that.

* * *

**SIYENN CITY - TECH SQUARE - DEXLABS HEADQUARTERS**

_"What? We_ are _pretty chill, right?"_

It did not take much effort for Dexter to tell when one was lying, nor did it make much difference to him unless he felt directly impacted. He wouldn't have known here, though, as Dexter was tuned out from the Powerpuff Girls' audio feed. All that he cared about was that they had saved the Kids Next Door from death yet again, and that they'd be arriving back to help in his laboratory shortly. What he had found annoying, however, was how quickly his new associates distracted themselves from the task at hand. The longer they spent arguing and doing nothing, the less time they had to prep for the fusions.

And yet no one shared his view. He couldn't comprehend the others' sense of priority when they were faced with annihilation on such a scale. It evoked a strong feeling of frustration within him, and the brisk pace of everything certainly wasn't helping either.

"I really must wonder how I have not lost my sanity within the last three days." Dexter mumbled to himself. Amidst all these different and diverse people – three metahuman sisters, a time-travelling Samurai, an alien superhero, a random assortment of children from the Cleveland suburbs, and another random kid from Canada – the screws holding together his brain seemed closer and closer to spinning out and unwinding. Then of course came the point when they all tried convincing him of a future that, for all he knew, wasn't a definite possibility.

At least, despite the insanity coming closer, the time-travelling Samurai spoke sense. Dexter could hear his footsteps coming closer, the click of each sandal against the floor intimidating yet reassuring. Jack spoke to the boy genius softly, looking directly at the monitor ahead.

"How goes your progress?" He asked.

"Evidently stalled until further notice from the girls, as well as awaiting multiple reports. To summarize, it has been unusually quiet."

"Is that not a good thing?"

"Under normal circumstances I would say so as well, but I have spectrometers outfitted with geiger counters and vibrational mapping to keep my eyes as open as possible. This is in the likelihood that this rescue had something to do with the invasion." Dexter theorized, "But apparently my hypothesis was incorrect, hence my impatience for them to return."

"From my experience, nothing is as quiet as it seems." Jack told him consciously, playing the pulpiteer as always. "We have yet to find out _why_ they crash-landed from the sky."

[Your concern is not necessary, Mr. Yamashiro; Diagnostic Scan: 68% completed]

Jack serenely turned to Dexter, impressed with this level of preparedness. He hadn't expected the young scientist to be as forward-thinking as he thought, especially with his previous argument with the Powerpuff Girls. It made the Samurai think, what more could he have known all along? "You plan for everything." he quietly spoke.

"More than you could possibly imagine, with all due respect."

Jack decided it wasn't worth leaving in the dark, and continued asking questions. "If you know so much, and consider more than you are believed to, then why put on this act?"

"A question for another time, unfortunately." Dexter told him. "More importantly, I had asked Computress to start running it the moment our allies completed the rescue operation. I have these spectrometers scattered across the tri-state area (complete with geiger counters if necessary), implementing them into common street appliances. We should have–"

[Scan complete]

"Convenient." Dexter spoke with pride, as if the speed of his operations ever needed to be addressed. Dexter squinted behind his glasses, also biting his lower lip as if keeping himself from smiling. He moved backward to operate the control panel and began typing away.

As he reviewed Computress's analysis, he began paying attention to smaller details, noticing one such area approximately two meters away from the girls, specifically around the destroyed S.C.A.M.P.E.R. He continued examining it, the synths and beeps of the holographic keyboard opening files at an almost inhuman speed.

Dexter knew how, though. The nanites within his brain were monitoring the corpus callosum and interfacing with the brain stem, upgrading his regular thinking processes. Each extra push the nanites gave his already extraordinary brain pushed him further into this mystery. Each one felt like an echo, distant and slight, yet loud and insightful as he followed each avenue.

But none of them needed to tell him that something looked off about his current scans.

"Wait..." he mumbled, "there appears to be another signal."

"You mean another life-form?" Jack asked quizzically. "How can you tell?"

"Well, to be truthful, I cannot." Dexter explained. "The life-form I am tracing is too small and simple to be picked up by my monitors. But look at the surrounding areas pertaining to the various near-by lifeforms. We have all three Powerpuff Girls and five Kids Next Door operatives, as well as the surrounding populace and foliage. They all have nanite signatures that Computress compiles and cross-references for another scan...singling out the anomaly."

"That feels like it's over-doing it."

Turning around, having not expected such an obtuse reaction, Dexter faced Johnny with an arrogant glare. "Excuse me?"

"I mean, if it's screwin' with your stuff, it's totally not human." Johnny replied, trying his best to contribute, despite knowing he was severely outclassed here.

"Firstly, where are your sisters?"

"They're scanning some weird gravity stuff around that park." Johnny explained.

"I never even saw them leave."

"They have a personal hologram drone." Johnny elaborated. "But what about me? I had a good point, right?"

Much to Johnny's disappointment, his comment wasn't very valuable to Dexter; with a dismissive sigh, the boy genius turned back around to face his monitor. "I refuse to explain why you fail to _find_ a point yet." Dexter monotonously scowled. "Jack, am I missing something deeper here?"

"I'm not sure," said the Samurai with an atonal kindness to his insult, "it would be best to consider his hunch, whether it be incorrect or not." Jack's mere voice brought a larger gravitas to the discussion. It was hard for Dexter to resist following that reasoning.

"Can't argue with gut feelings, dude."

"Please shut him up before I blow my brains out..."

Jack chuckled. "Well, if I had to endure the pain of the Bagpipes, Dexter, you too must learn to accept your friends for who th––"

Dexter turned to face the wise samurai, but his wisdom did not measure or have to reflect Dexter's patience; the boy genius gave him a scornful scowl that was a signal to Jack, shutting him up effectively, having realized that his dictums were somewhat inappropriate.

And then, unexpectedly, "Fine. I shall act on your "gut feeling", Mr. Test, but only because the Samurai here told me to."

"Word."

To that, the boy genius could only squint his eyes with the utmost contempt. Out of all the idiots that found their way into his lab, Johnny Test had to be the most unbearable. But it wasn't anything hard to shrug off. It wasn't like Deedee and the number of times she nearly ruined him.

"Perhaps this hunch is not as discourageable." Dexter sheepishly said.

"What is it?"

"Well...what could have provoked Computress to run a secondary scan, much less cross-reference nanite signatures, would be if the anomaly was minuscule. It _is_ minuscule with reference to nanite signatures and infrared sensors." Dexter continued with a dreaded intrigue, and with a few more clicks on the keyboard, the display shifted to a green layout and with a different pattern. "But with reference to irradiation...examine the radiation of the humans, and now look at the anomaly." Pointing towards the area, there was a clear difference between the areas. "Clear signs of ionizing radiation, remaining unchanged despite all other energy signatures reading as stable."

"So it's just another mutant-thing or some EVO."

"And you wonder why I consider you an idiot. You JUST proposed the idea of this being extra-terrestrial." said Dexter. "So I am telling you. No human on this planet, meta-human or EVO, gives off this type of energy signature. It is the energy you would find at a Nuclear Plant, or the depths of space."

"And now...patterns are beginning to align." Jack realized in horror, though to Johnny's confusion. "Ben had told you that the aliens he encountered in the future adapted to the Earth. And here, this life form is adapting to the environment just as he said the fusions could."

"...without degrading its own biological footprint. It's accumulating to our environment." Dexter concurred in fear, eyes widening past his goggles' frame. Turning back to the screen, he knew exactly what was happening. "Oh no..."

 **[Alert! Alert!]** Computress rang through the intercoms once again, with unfortunate news to worsen the situation. **[Unknown projectile : approaching atmosphere]**

"Oh, that cannot be good at all..."

* * *

**TOWNSVILLE PARK**

A calm had descended upon the Park field. The members of Sector V stopped arguing for a moment, trying to catch their breath. But Number Two was the most frightened of them all. After Number Three had patched up the wound to his abdomen, he began pacing back and forth, muttering things at a volume only someone with super-hearing could pick up. Blossom caught a few words and phrases, such as "should I tell them" or "what's gonna happen". She paid no attention to it, though. She was a little more focused on melting the now-frozen wreckage of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R, as Number One had told them they needed the parts back for repair. How they were going to repair this pile of junk was beyond her.

She saw Bubbles approaching the more traumatized members of the group with a gleaming smile, reassuring them with positive thoughts while Buttercup remained high in the air, watching over them. But Two, One, and Four weren't willing to calm down. They had the most terrified looks on their faces. One's eyes were so wide they were peaking outside his signature ray-bans. Four remained somewhat dizzy from the apparent concussion. But Number Two looked like he had crawled out of Him's lair itself. A suspicion grew in her mind...

...A suspicion interrupted by a very urgent bell ringing; Dexter was trying to contact them. As soon as the other two Powerpuffs heard it, they flew towards each other, convening to hear the message.

 _"Blossom! You need to evacuate the area immediately!"_ Dexter spoke with a frightening urgency.

"We will as soon as we can confirm the KND are okay. There's a lot of people out here taking pictures..."

 _"Forget the pictures!"_ He shouted. _"_ A _meteor is headed for your location, and there's another faint life signature present_ _! It's–"_

Inexplicably, the comms began screeching with loud static, making Blossom wince. Her superhuman hearing only made things worse when it was so close to her eardrums. Bubbles and Buttercup were sharing her sense of shock. Clearly something was coming, but from the sound of it...it was already here.

"It's one of them, isn't it?"

_"Affirmativ-!"_

"Well, I need confirmation before I can-."

 _"It's ionized."_ Dexter was able to tell her just before the comms returned to static.

"Thanks, Dex." She thanked him, not needing any other explanation. It _was_ them, and soon after that she began shouting as loud as she could. Sharing a glance with her sisters, they each nodded and knew what they had to do. Bubbles returned to the ground and ran towards the KND, while Buttercup joined her sister as they skirted in streams of light across Townsville Park to alert the civilians.

Blossom stopped immediately in the air and began warning everyone. "Okay, everybody move out! This area needs to be quarantined and evacuated!"

None of the citizens of Townsville wanted to listen, though. Some of them took pictures of the two girls in mid-air, but most of them started murmuring and whispering amongst each other. The majority of them were a little too focused elsewhere.

"They're not listening..." Blossom lamented.

"Gee, wonder why..." Buttercup sarcastically remarked, gazing at the remains of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. The citizens of Townsville were clearly entranced by the action and the destruction, like moths to a flame. Buttercup rolled her eyes, confused by their city's addiction to violence; and they wonder why insurance rates are so high here, she thought. "Dexter said he detected a fusion around us?"

"Yeah."

"Then there's no time to lose. We have to find it now!" Buttercup raced back to the wreckage and stretched her hands, getting ready for a fight.

"We'll worry about the meteor later!" Blossom said, agreeing with her sister, following her back.

As the grass blurred underneath them, they were quickly approaching the half-melted ice encasing the shuttle. Minutes became seconds as they were nearly there. They could feel the frosty temperature of the glacier Blossom had made.

But it didn't last.

As soon as they made it back, the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. exploded with a blazing roar. It caught all three Powerpuffs and all five KND operatives off-guard. Blossom and Buttercup attempted to balance themselves in mid-air, but were quickly thrown back by the force of the explosion. Chunks of ice flew everywhere as all the heroes looked in shock. Luckily, the citizens finally took a hint and began scattering screaming bloody murder. An explosion finally did the trick.

Blossom was the most confused, however. She was positive she put out all the flames and removed all hazardous material. It was covered in ICE for crying out loud. How did it still explode?!

Number Two was also just as much in shock. His day had been one horror movie after another, and all this could spell was worse things to come. He really looked forward to repairing that S.C.A.M.P.E.R. But out of the corner of his eye, he saw something far more terrifying. All the panicked pacing that had come before ceased as his body petrified itself with fear.

A green amorphous blob was stretching and rolling across the grass, bubbling and convulsing. And it was headed for the next S.C.A.M.P.E.R.

As Two stumbled back in terror, the others began to take note of the creature that was spawning behind them. One and Four tensed up, Five and Three looked with confusion, but the Powerpuff Girls each glared and floated in the air, battle ready, fists up, and ready to jump it at the speed of sound if necessary.

And the blob did not disappoint as it morphed into a familiar but just as nightmarish creature with glowing red eyes and a jagged mouth, which opened wide as though it was yawning...or trying to roar. An arrowed tail protruded from its backside and leaned forward like a scorpion's stinger. It vomited more of the green goo which they had come to know as fusion matter, according to Ben and Otto's story. The spawn hissed, shrieked, and writhed in rage as it shot glances to everyone in front of it. It finally set sights on Bubbles, who was the least ready of the three superpowered heroines. With a growl and a cough...

...it lunged at her.

"AAAGH-"

Just as it did and just as her sister squealed, Buttercup shot the fusion spawn with a powerful ray of heat vision. She did not let up until the spawn was properly disintegrated, wanting no trace of it left. Nothing would dare harm her sisters, not as long as she breathed and kicked ass. When the spawn finally dispersed and remained on the ground, it took a while for her beams to stop, and when they did it left a small smoldering crater in the ground.

The toughest fighter of the three softly panted as the glow in her eyes faded away. She had to store a lot of energy into that blast, it almost exhausted her. She closed her eyes and shook her head, and breathed out in relief.

But no one there expected it to be that simple. They still had a meteor to take care of.

"That's not the end of it, right?" Bubbles asked. No one could answer. "Yeah, I didn't think so..."

* * *

Dexter was in overdrive mode, a state of stress and quick thinking that he couldn't normally afford given his line of work. But it had to be done. He was furiously typing away on the large computer's keyboard, mapping out the trajectory of the incoming meteor, cross-referencing as much data from his satellites as he could. If he was reading them right, then the situation only got worse.

However impossible it seemed, it appeared that one dot tracking a meteor had become three.

His eyes widened, and his goggles flexed to meet the same expression. A drop of sweat that rolled down his face wouldn't accurately describe the flood of exhaustion Dexter faced by this revelation. There were now three meteors of identical radiological readings headed for three separate locations across the tri-state area. The original that was still heading to Townsville Park, the second that was heading to Sector V's treehouse in Hero's Square, and a third one heading for...

...A third one heading for Tech Square.

These three locations were each associated to the heroes and himself. It could not be a mere coincidence, Dexter thought, the hive mind that Ben was referring to and the mastermind behind it all was clearly responsible. But how could it know? It hadn't made contact with Earth yet. Suddenly, In the corner of his eye, he saw that the extra life signal that he had found had vanished. Without any hesitation, he opened a call to Blossom.

"Powerpuff Girls! Do you read me?"

_"Loud and clear. We exterminated a stowaway fusion spawn, and we're all getting ready for the meteor."_

_"BATTLE STATIONS!"_ said someone in the background noise of the call.

 _"What is_ _it?"_ Blossom asked.

"Not good news, unfortunately." The boy genius admitted. "I have detected two more objects fast-approaching; they are giving off the same readings as the meteor approaching your team in Townsville. But they're arriving in separate locations."

_"So much for doubting Ben's story."_

"For the last time, it was not doubt!" Dexter argued adamantly, "I am calling to ask for assistance. One of those areas is here in Tech Square. Can you spare any of your sisters to help us?"

_"I wish I could. But Townsville needs our protection now more than ever, and I don't know if one Powerpuff and a couple of non-superpowered teenagers will be enough to handle these things. Buttercup was only able to take out one, but there's strength in numbers. If those Terrafusers are more powerful than what we experienced..."_

"I understand. Inform Sector V that one of the projected target areas is in Hero's Square. Their sector will need some of them."

_"On it. They should be able to spare a few of their own. But what about you? Is Ben getting better?"_

"His treatment has a few minutes left." Dexter informed her. As illogical as it seemed, he was beginning to understand why Buttercup was upset about the treatment period. If only he had been more careful, they could mount a better defense in front of Dexlabs. Another idea had crossed his mind, but he hadn't properly considered it until now. "Blossom, do you think it is a good idea to let the Test brother help?"

 _"That's up to you. You sorta implied he reminded you of Deedee, but if you think he can be useful, then make him useful. But if anyone can help right now, it's Jack."_ Blossom responded. _"I have to go now; Bubbles is back from scouting. I'll tell the KND."_

"Copy that." Dexter relayed, ending the call. He returned to the original question he had. How could the fusions know to target locations of disturbance? How could it know to target these places connected to people fighting against them? He quickly realized that the Terrafusers were acting on memory. One was headed to Townsville because the fusion spawn that had stowed away on the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. had led it there. One was headed to Sector V based on what they had learned about us in 2009, most likely taking advantage of a less-than battle ready KND sector. One must've headed here because of...

...because of the trace amounts of residue in Ben and Otto's clothing.

He really should have put those clothes in the laundry.

Jack approached the boy genius upon this realization, holding his katana close to his leg. "So, they are coming here."

Comically contrasting Jack's slower pace, the hyperactive Johnny Test zoomed by the console. "Who's coming? I can get party snacks."

"Indeed they are. We seem to have their attention." Dexter said. "They each have a separate trajectory, and I am hoping that some of the KND operatives the girls rescued will be able to make it in time to their treehouse. Luckily for us, one of them is to come to Tech Square in approximately 20 minu–"

Just then, a thunderous boom was heard outside the walls of the lab. Luckily for Dexter, the impact radius was extremely minimal. Regardless, the three of them stood petrified with dread. They all knew exactly what just happened.

"I...stand corrected..."

The Terrafuser stood outside the glass panels of the Dexlabs headquarters. Squirming, pulsating, wriggling, and glowing green as the tentacles beneath this egg began seeping and penetrating the concrete sidewalk. It was just across the road, in front of a fountain separating Dexlabs and Mandark Industries.

At this point, Dexter contemplated calling his rival for help, assuming Mandark even noticed the egg. He wishes he could tell him this is all technically his fault.

All three heroes were locked into a staring contest with the Terrafuser, refusing to move a muscle until something happened. They couldn't predict what was to come, and it left each of them terrified.

"So more...fusions?" asked Johnny rhetorically.

Well, almost everyone.

"More fusions." Dexter confirmed. "The invasion has begun..."

Johnny nodded his head with an overdramatic jaw-drop. "I'm nodding my head to look like I know what that means, 'cause I've really been half-listening this entire time, sooooo..." He began blowing some gum as he kept his cool.

Dexter huffed in mild frustration. An annoying sibling was the least of his worries at that moment (or where he got chewing gum), but as Johnny rambled, he came to regret even thinking of keeping him around for the sake of his mutant powers. What was more unexpected though, were the sound of quiet footsteps from behind. Dexter and Jack each spun around in fear, Jack reaching for his katana, Dexter stumbling backward, and Johnny being unfazed by the whole thing, keeping watch on the Terrafuser.

It was Otto, with a half-complete Larry 3000 chasis in one hand, and a handful of wires and circuitry in the other. He looked positively cheerful.

"Hey guys!" He greeted with his usual optimism. "Say, I was kinda wondering, Dexter; I need a micro-transformer to link to Larry's limb joints, and I was wondering if you had any to...to...to spare..." Otto spoke, growing distracted by the end of his inquiry, and soon enough he was downright terrified upon sight of the Terrafuser. Trauma was washing over him in crashing and thrashing waves, each one more concussive than the last.

Soon after, Johnny spoke up, still chewing some of the gum. "Hey guys? Is the green egg supposed to do that?" He remained as oblivious as ever.

Turning back around, Dexter saw that the Terrafuser was indeed beginning to generate fusion spawns. They were wriggling out of the pulsating tumors like balls going through a net, extending their jagged jaws and shrieking in primal rage as they dropped out, frightening all the surrounding bystanders.

"Yes, it is supposed to do that. Now get somewhere safe!" Dexter shouted, and Johnny shrugged and walked to somewhere safe. "I shall try to lock the walls down, but I cannot say how long they will hold." He exclaimed. Otto remained petrified, but Jack found himself at a crossroads.

He touched his scar with a faint feeling of fear, the mark of his failure haunted him even to this moment. He still held himself responsible for Ashi's death...or non-existence. What Buttercup said to him still rang true, but in the slightest iota of fear and self-doubt, he could feel the past clawing at him. And now the future stared back at him, promising no better way out. He thought back to the love of his life, and all the fear and hope that came with. He thought about the cherry blossom tree that he could almost picture them laying underneath; they would have laughed, cried, had children, grown old, and be remembered for all of time.

With a sorrowful sigh, he very gently let it go.

His mission was set anew, and he would not fail the future. Just as he had done all those years ago, he remembered the future was still worth the fight. Ashi gave him that hope, and the future would remain worth it all, even in the face of apocalypse...a face of many that he stared into at that very moment.

He stood up without anymore regret, and began planning out an offensive plan. He knew his feelings to be ghosts of the past, and that he was no ordinary Samurai. He wondered at this instant if he had been present in this future that Ben spoke of. He wondered if him preventing Aku's rule lead to such a future. No matter what the case was, he was here to change things for the better.

"Then the time has come for battle." Jack proudly claimed, though his voice lacked any passion. He knew what he had to do as he walked out of the lab, his right hand slowly reaching for his katana's hilt, and unsheathing it in its brilliant and luminescent glory. He stepped toward the glass doors, looking back to see Dexter frozen in place with the lockdown command half-typed. He smirked, offering a bounty of reassurance with such a small expression of hope. He only said one final thing before leaving.

"Wait here."

* * *

"Wait, Sector V is a target?!" One exclaimed in shock, standing up almost immediately.

Blossom nodded back. "That's what Dexter said. But he wants you guys to split up; a few of you take your S.C.A.M.P.E.R. and go back home as soon as you can before the Terrafuser lands." Blossom reasoned to Number One, "They need their leaders."

"Let Bradley take care of it!" Five argued. "We've got lots of operatives holed up in the treehouse. Numbuh Five sayin' we can help here!"

"From what I can tell, "Bradley" sounds like a rookie. You really shouldn't risk having him in command right now."

"You underestimating kids, Powerpuff?!"

"I'm telling you to be strategical and help your operatives since you have the chance." Blossom told her back. "More importantly, Providence is on their way; they sent out an envoy minutes ago and should be showing up at any moment. If they catch all of you here, your cover is blown and the KND is finished. If all of you stay here too long, someone's going to notice."

"We've already exposed ourselves for too long." Two said. "Those communication issues we had led to us using a NanoCom channel as a replacement. We went public hours ago, so Providence coming here can't scare us away."

"It'll give them more incentive to hijack your new channel, and it'll get all of you decommissioned way faster. At least if you're in smaller numbers and without your ship, you can pose as a couple of new vigilantes." Blossom argued. "It may be your only option until things get better, not just for your image but for our city and your sector."

"...damnit" Five muttered under her breath.

"Precisely my point!" One exclaimed. "Let the superheroes manage their own turf, we have to return to ours before it's too late!"

"It'd be nice to see if they're okay..." Three quietly said in agreement, nodding her head with the rest of her team.

But before they could figure out who stays behind and who returns to Hero's Square, a thunderous boom rose above them. All of the heroes present looked up to see what sort of disturbance this was, and were woefully surprised to see the clouds in the sky lit with a green tint. Each of the Powerpuff Girls began hovering in mid-air; they needed no reminder or confirmation of what was coming.

"Okay, there's our meteor! Everyone, GET READY!" Blossom exclaimed, eyes glowing a dangerous shade of pink. "Nigel, if you're taking anyone with you, do it now!" she said before rocketing into the cloudy sky with Bubbles and Buttercup.

As the girls lifted off, Two and Five turned to their commander with a determined glare. Five adamantly said, "We've gotta stay, Numbuh One; me and Numbuh Two." No more words were said after that. They were a part of this whole thing from the beginning, and they had to try to see it at the end. A tense silence was broken by a huff from their sunglasses-wearing leader. One turned to Three and Four, the former looking anxious to return to Sector V, and the latter still holding his head from the pounding headache. With a deep breath and a race against time, he made a quick decision.

"I understand." One told them, quickly saluting them before boarding the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. "Good luck, operatives." Three hopped in her usual station to check communications, One called shotgun, and Four hopped in the driver's seat and started flying the vessel away towards Sector V, blowing away stray vines and leaves in the grass as it left Townsville Park.

But was it the best idea to have Four pilot the S.C.A.M.P.E.R?

"Didn't Number Four have a concussion?" Two asked.

Just as he said that, the engine sputtered a little; it looked like the ship was almost about to crash.

"Yeah...that was a bad idea." Five said as the S.C.A.M.P.E.R's direction curved and flopped a little bit before thrusting away. "A _really_ bad idea." She added as she pulled out her dual P.0.P. guns ( **P** ortable sub- **Zero** **P** istol) from her NanoCom and ran to battle position, with Two following behind as he put on a F.L.A.P.P.U.H. backpack. Two was giddy with excitement as he hustled and catched up to Five, bringing up a familiar conversation.

"Ready to finally play superhero?"

"Again, Hoagie, we're not heroes! We just got caught up in this mess!" Five once again rejected, despite her volunteering just seconds ago.

"Tomato, Tomatoe!" Two shot back. "You're the one who said we should stay!"

"They saved your life, Hoagie, so Numbuh Five owes 'em big time!"

Meanwhile, high in the stratosphere, the girls were racing and flying above and away from the city of Townsville, their colored trails of light not too far behind them. They had heard the Terrafuser enter the atmosphere, and were flying as fast as they could to-

-what's this?! Another thunderclap is heard, and the green light that was slowly growing brighter as the meteor approached the surface...was now beaming in their face. The Terrafuser appeared to have accelerated its speed dramatically, catching the heroines off guard.

"Whoah, that thing really has a mind of its own!"

"Or someone else's mind is controlling it!"

That had Buttercup thinking as she readied her fists for punching. The spawn that she obliterated with her heat vision, while it had disintegrated, never sunk into the grass floor like she had seen them do all those years back. And from what she could hear over the comm, it sounded like the Terrafuser was coming to Townsville precisely because the spawn was already on the ground. What was the connection?

She realized promptly what the issue was. "Mind...someone's mind...A Hive Mind!" Quickly turning around and letting her guard down for a moment, she turned to her sister and leader in haste. "Blossom! The reason that puddle of fusion matter didn't sink into the ground, it needs a hive mind! It needs the terrafusers to go back to!"

"You're right! It's trying to form a network! Then we don't let that meteor touch the ground!" She commanded as she rocketed into the sky.

Buttercup gave a fierce nod, and the moment she turned her head back-

"UCK-"

By the time Blossom was high in the Mesosphere, the meteor had finally struck. The meteor struck Buttercup square in the torso as she had let her guard down. Now, the green Powerpuff and the green Terrafuser were heading straight back to square one.

"BUTTERCUP!" Bubbles shouted in shock, while Blossom could only watch in surprise. The blue superheroine was quicker to react, the red-headed leader following shortly after as both Powerpuffs rocketed down to catch the falling star and sister.

The chase was afoot as they moved further away from the atmosphere and outer space, waves of clouds being blown apart by the green meteor and the girls flying through the poofy rings of condensed vapor like lions in a circus show. But the egg was accelerating. It was getting faster and faster, and the girls didn't know if they could catch both in time, to keep their sister from a certain death and the Terrafuser from making first contact with the Earth.

Though behind the large projectile was Buttercup, still conscious and kicking. Also punching, zapping, and using every bit of manpower she had in her muscles to slow the Terrafuser down. She gritted her teeth with anxiety; at this rate she would have collapsed from the sheer amount of force she was putting in and her consequential exhaustion. But she willed herself to stay awake. She had to stop this thing's maneuvering and cushion its descent! Or the Earth would be doomed! She had to save the day on this one, and she had no choice!

Bubbles was thinking differently as the city of Townsville came back into view, and a large green patch of land marking Townsville Park was sure to be the Terrafuser's destination, with Two and Five watching intently, armed and ready. Bubbles was worried that her sister was failing behind the meteor. There would not be a way to remove her or save her from underneath the egg once it bonded to the ground. She admitted to herself that this was all very pessimistic, but as the Park was fast approaching, she was beginning to see no other choice.

"Buttercup, look out!" Bubbles said as she stopped holding herself back. It took years of proper practice to master flight, and as such she and her two fellow crimefighters knew how to maintain a constant speed and when to accelerate. Letting go, Bubbles finally outpaced the Terrafuser and shoved Buttercup out of the way in fear, eyes becoming a little watery. Blossom tried her best to accelerate and catch it, but after being outpaced by the blue one, it immediately adapted and rocketed to the grassy grounds with a BOOM!

The ground shook, knocking the KND operatives off their feet, making them drop their guns, and the two Powerpuffs winced from the shock of the explosion. Blossom was sent flying back, somersaulting in mid-air, and when she stabilized, she looked in horror at what had happened.

They failed.

As far as they knew now, the invasion would now begin.

Buttercup was less than pleased, shaking off Bubbles support with clear anger. "WHY?! Why'd you save me?! I could've stopped it!" She said as she got up.

But Bubbles wasn't about to defend saving her sister's life. "No! Not at the speed it was going at! You would have been crushed!" Bubbles scolded in retort, her eyes getting glossy with fear and relief. The thought of losing Buttercup would've been too much to bare for her, especially now of all times.

Unfortunately for them, the fusions weren't exactly patient with their bickering. The egg began squirming, pulsating, wriggling, and glowing green. It grossed out everyone as they recovered from the shockwave of the crash. They looked on with dread. They knew what was about to happen. Blossom quickly flew to stand by her sisters and readied her heat vision, Number Five aimed her P.0.P. guns, Two brought out his own F.R.A.P.P.E just as he activated his F.L.A.P.P.U.H, Bubbles and Buttercup began hovering and the grass beneath them was blowing as though in the wind.

And fusion spawns began popping out of the Terrafuser in droves. Thus the battle commenced in a fury of lights, superhuman punches, and artillery rounds. Though in greater detail, regular streams of freeze rays and red-colored mushes of blended acidic food were flying everywhere. The girls leapt into action, igniting their heat vision at everything they could; Buttercup went to kick-box the Terrafuser with every move she knew, while Bubbles and Blossom were taking out every fusion spawn that came into their line of sight. Blossom was just in time firing on a spawn that was just about to bite Number Five's head off. Number Two was doing all he could in the air with the other girls as his F.L.A.P.P.U.H. carried him off the ground, firing the acidic smoothies at the alien vessel of terraforming and destruction. But more spawns were targeting the human operatives.

"Get down!" Blossom screamed, looked around hastily and her eye-beams following as she flew up and took out as many of the spawns surrounding the KND operatives, mentally sighing in relief that she caught them in time. Two saw what Blossom had to do, and landed his F.L.A.P.P.U.H. to assist his fellow KND operative.

But it was clear that our heroes were getting weary quickly. Fighting the endless legions of fusion spawns would not get them anywhere, they all realized. The girls reconvened to hash out a battle strategy.

"That thing just keeps sending them out non-stop! Why?!"

"It's trying to overwhelm us in a first stand. If we win, the spawn rate might subside, but we can't keep this up forever!"

"Especially when we don't know how to win." Bubbles tried to contribute something. All this pessimism wasn't good for her. "What about trying to bottleneck the egg's lymph nodes? To block the spawns from coming out?

"We'd need a powerful reactionary force to make that work!" Blossom said in response, her mind racing to find a solution, and so one already came. She remembered indexing all these plans and strategies when she and her sisters were just beginning their second year of crimefighting. "Let's try Plan A!"

"That is SO not gonna work!" Buttercup objected. She did not like where this was going. "And I know because I do it a lot!"

"I usually don't like brute force, but we have to give it a try! Get ready to ram!" Blossom commanded, and all three girls held hands tightly and firmly. Blossom was hoping that if they could keep the spawns in, the over-stocking of materials and resources could lead to the Terrafuser exploding. It was a dumb idea, for sure, but a few Sherlock Holmes quotes later helped her reason that this was their best chance so far, no matter how flawed it actually was. So with a deep breath, and a calm serene state of mind, they channelled all their rage and raw power into their touching and clenching fists. Surging with pure energy, they accelerated forward and charged at a supersonic speed to keep the spawns inside the Terrafuser.

They were now face-to-face with an ensemble of the enemy. Gritting their teeth, they persisted and grunted as they pushed with a combined effort, letting loose their heat vision to give them an extra advantage. It was like trying to play a deadly version of Whack-A-Mole; the "moles" continued manifesting at a considerable speed, shrieking their non-existent lungs out with an inhuman cry, only to be shoved back in by a Powerpuff Girl matching the speed at which they were spawning.

For a while, the plan seemed to work; with each spawn they returned to the Terrafuser, the lymph nodes were growing brighter and brighter in a slimy green. It was overloading.

But what they didn't expect was for their plan to work in the enemy's favor.

The Terrafuser's glowing reached an optimum level and blew up in the faces of the girls sending them flying and crashing back into the grass of the Park, rolling from the shock and in the dirt as the Terrafuser continued to spawn little creatures in all directions.

A defeat like this, however, didn't stop Buttercup from injecting some of her snark.

"I told you."

"It was worth trying." Blossom said. She was right. It was worth trying.

"Got Plan B? Or Plan R.3? Or any kind of plan?"

"Yeah I got a plan, and I hate it." Blossom said, getting back up and shaking the dirt off of her.

"It's not everyone for themselves, right?"

"This is why I didn't let you write the plan index, Bubbles." Blossom joked. "Everybody, focus on the giant green egg! Take out the spawns as they come, but we need to weaken that terrafuser!"

And thus the girls began to devote their full power to finishing off the spawns. With their full focus now on the pawns, they had no idea how to take out the rook that was the Terrafuser. All they could do in the meantime was avoid them until the spawning-rate lowered for a moment. But even they could not attend to every spawn as they hopped at top speed over to them.

Behind them, the Kids Next Door had been listening in. They had their orders now, and a plan of action, however futile it could turn out to be. Five decided to waste no more time and continued firing.

"Number Five?" Two asked, wanting to see if his friend would follow Blossom's command.

"You heard the Powerpuff!" Five said, not losing the line of fire from her sight, sniping each spawn as it came. "Keep the aliens occupied so the heroes can try to take care of the bigger fish!"

* * *

In the wealth of knowledge and memories picked up during his 50-year stay in Aku's future, he could not properly recall a moment where he had had to cut and slice through so many opponents at the same time. Perhaps he did and the memory escapes him, the older man that he is mentally, but he remembered training himself in his journeys across the developing world to hone his senses and mind, to know how to clear his thoughts and train his brain for an almost perfect sense of recollection. Even if his mind is not as able as it once was, even if he could not recall the exact moment he fought so many enemies at once, be they alien bounty hunters or Aku's personal robots or cyborg warriors of varying physically memorable looks, he could still recall what he felt in that very moment, however hazy it had become.

Thus it stunned him that this feeling of stress and exhaustion was like nothing he had faced before. He panted.

It was a miracle he could even finish the legions of spawns that had manifested before him. He panted. He wondered what could have caused this Terrafuser to slow down. Was it building up its miniature army for this moment? He panted. Was its rate of creation slower than he had thought?

He panted.

Gaining control of his inner self, he relaxed in that moment of serenity and steadied his breathing. He was in control again.

A sole spawn manifested and attempted to make a final stand.

Jack, sword in hand, promptly separated its "head" from its jagged jaw with one swoop and a slow sheathing of the enchanted katana. It consequently sunk back into the ground.

Soon after, he heard banging from inside the doors of Dexlabs. Perhaps it was nothing of concern, but he couldn't take that chance. His ears perked up while his eyes stayed on the seemingly inactive Terrafuser, waiting for it to make a sudden movement.

He wondered...if these being operated in a collective mind like how Dexter had described, why would it be so docile with an enemy ready to strike?

Unless...it was meant to be a distraction.

The banging became louder, and louder, and suddenly it sounded like a door had been kicked open...a metal door.

 _"Jack...you must return inside!"_ Dexter shouted with urgency over the commlink. _"We have been breached!"_

Jack widened his eyes at such a notion, but quickly realized his error in judgement. He underestimated the spawns' ability to coordinate and attack. They kept him distracted and tired enough to fail to notice a second legion enter from the back. He turned around quickly and heard shouts of fear from within the building, and did not hesitate at the danger his clouded vision brought them. His sandals clicked and clacked against the concrete and it followed as the concrete became plastic. He kicked the glass doors open and continued to run towards Dexter and Otto as they were surrounded, catching Johnny getting the Dexlabs scientists, his sisters included, into a nearby safe room.

They all turned to face him as the second legion of spawns stopped in their own tracks, looking at the samurai with a fierce and mindless state of demonic anger. They shrieked and squealed with a battle cry.

Jack slid on his knees into the heat of this battle, letting the weight of his blade cut through the green glob of goo. Spinning around to counter and deflect each blast of green energy, he was slashing back and forth at the spawns, each quick reflection of the sun on the blade charging his blade's enchantment, making it almost blind to the casual eye. He took out more and more spawns with each swipe. He moved so fast that all Dexter, Johnny and Otto could see were the blinding gleams of reflected light.

By the time they had opened their eyes, the katana had been sheathed, and the fusion monsters lay bubbling on the floor, most of them in halves. But Jack didn't ease himself. If what these children had told him about these aliens were true, then it would take more than a swipe of a sword to vanquish them. And soon enough, Jack's unease was proven right, as they had all begun convulsing and joining together, reforming into a much larger fusion spawn.

With quick skill, this Jumbo Spawn hopped back into a defensive position, but was met immediately by Jack attacking from the other direction, pacing forward with great speed. Quickly, Jack reversed his swing and blocked, slicing the spawn in two. Jack moved into a defensive position, setting his katana forward and kneeling back. He remembered from his studies across the world; each of the basic Ninjutsu katana stances, including the Kendo _kamae_ , were ingrained and memorized in his mind. This was _Chūdan_ , helpful for maintaining defense for others. He kept stepping back as the katana was raised at his mid-ground. He stared face-front at the regenerating alien. It was piecing itself together with every stitch.

He moved forward again, quickly moving his katana, spinning it around deflecting each blast of energy. The monster charged forward as well, having built up energy to ram the Samurai with a concussive force. But Jack blocked and, in the spawn's moment of weakness, found another opportunity to attack it again, remembering his fencing lessons in France as well, and plunged his sword into the spawn before retracting it. The Jumbo Spawn barely had time to block Jack's attack before turning its attention back to the others. Jack, realizing what the spawn was intending to do, switched to _Waki_ and moved his katana to be perpendicular to his waist, hastily slashing outward like a wave at the Spawn. Once again, the fusion monster moved back in defense. Half of its body was cut off, but unlike previous times, the regeneration process was considerably faster. Jack didn't care to find out why, focusing on his opponent's offensive. But Dexter was analyzing the fight from a distance. He could see what had happened, and why this fusion had a sudden change of behavior.

The spawn had adapted to Jack's techniques.

It was fascinating and yet horrifying to see a mindless creature bear some intelligence to adapt to a _Samurai_ 's sword techniques. It was only driving Ben's point further home to Dexter.

Meanwhile, Jack and the fusion kept a safe distance from one another. The atmosphere was tense between the two moments; immeasurable silences kept the two apart, but Jack decided to use that information. He began navigating a way to take out the boss. But so far, there appeared to be no way to kill it. They continued circling each other, testing the patience of everyone else in the room.

"JUST HIT HIM ALREADY! GEEZ!" Johnny shouted arrogantly, to which Jack mentally face-palmed. The boy had no understanding of his technique. Neither did Johnny have any grasp of the boss' apparent immortality.

So, Jack stood up and switched to _Hassō_ , now remaining solely on the defense as the Jumbo Spawn began making its move. And an unforeseen move it certainly was. The monster dispersed itself, reverting to a puddle of fusion matter, soaking into the metal floor (which, of course, was impossible). They moved closer to the now bubbling puddle, all of them in tense curiosity.

But out of all the people in the room, Otto figured it out the fastest. "Guys, it's changing!"

Jack didn't know what he meant by that. "How so?" He asked inattentively, his arms folded in and his hands still tightly gripping the katana.

"The only other way it does." Otto said, as the lights began flickering and the ground begins to glow green with streams of fusion matter residue. Otto froze at this; the last time he had encountered a giant fusion monster, he had nearly died.

Metal objects of all kinds began bending and creaking with an ominous groan towards the large fusion matter puddle. Everyone looked around in bewilderment, but Otto was stepping back in fear, the disembowelled and half-finished body of Larry 3000 still in hand and now raised high above his head. Though he felt the pull of the body plates towards the slime, he was able to pull it back. Other materials were not so lucky. They began thrashing and shifting, swamping up into a pile of scrap that littered the floor, much to Dexter's chagrin.

Out of the corner, an experimental Dexbot chasis crashed down from holding and was pulled in the direction of the puddle, acquiescing with the other metals and materials to begin forming a larger and more humanoid shape. The metals liquified under the bubbling fusion matter, becoming makeshift bat-wings that were green in color, with the chasis forming a tall and monstrous body in front of the group. Glowing red eyes possessed the technological terror as it began using its wings, spinning around, revealing a chasis drenched in veins of fusion matter, underneath it the Dexlabs logo proudly stamped onto its chest. The helm was moving back two antennae made from sensory nodes, and opened a bent-into-shape jaw with jagged mechanical teeth. It stared into their soles, unable to growl as it did when it was a fusion spawn, but upon opening its sharp hinged jaw, a great sound of static equally overwhelmed them.

Otto was the first to recognize this mechanical monstrosity. He had seen plenty of them hovering about in Goat's Junkyard while stuck in the future. "T-T-T-T-Techwing!"

A flap of the wings sent it soaring to the ceiling, where the Techwing let out another screech of static, presumably as a battle-rallying cry. The armless abomination then positioned its wings to strike down hard and fast on the three. Jack was quick to block it with of his katana, holding the beast and himself in a locked battle. Gritting his teeth, Jack knew that he needed a new plan of attack. This was not going to last him forever, and his sunlight-powered enchanted blade could only last a few more minutes.

That was it, Dexter thought, who stood behind the battle in complete awe. He couldn't bare to watch from the sidelines. He had to get his gloves dirty. But logic fought back. Dexter was coordinating everyone's counter-offensive against the Terrafusers. Ben had never told him how he died in the apocalyptic future, but he could piece together that whatever made him perish lead to a worse future for everyone. At this point, self-preservation was not an option, it was a necessity.

But at the same time, heroism bubbled within him, scratching at his mind, begging him, imploring him to do the right thing, no matter how small and despite how outmatched he was when in a room with a human guinea pig, a time traveller, and the world's first superhero samurai facing off an alien monster assimilating his own tech. He couldn't be completely docile. He had to try something. Besides, if he was gone, Mandark could take over, right? He did fine sending Ben back from the future.

But he quickly forgot about the future. What about the present? The _now_?

Jack was finally struggling in taking these aliens out, and the powers the katana possessed would not last for much longer. What could he do?

He did have...one idea.

Quickly opening his NanoCom, he connected to the larger computer and his larger inventory file (courtesy of Morebucks Banking), activating Computress and employing a silent protocol. He knew the moment he made any sudden movements, the Techwing would lose focus on Jack. He hoped the samurai could hold on a little longer as he pulled out a special file for a personalized weapon. He was under contract and personal obligation to not create any weapons like Mandark did for Mandark Industries, focusing only on innovation. This item was initially meant for multi-purpose engineering and hardware interfacing, with a variety of tools and measuring devices should the need arise.

He waited for just the right moment to start running, and to pull out his ace-in-the-hole.

Three more swipes from the Techwing...

Almost time two-to do this...

This was his one shot.

NOW!

Out the boy genius pulled his giant wrench, steely grey in its shaft and grip while its braces, nuts and bolts were a deep shade of metal navy blue. He ran for it, as fast as he could, with Johnny and Otto surprised by his sudden action, figuring him for the less active type. Even Dexter was pushing second thoughts about himself away as he continued to do something he wouldn't dream of doing in the near future.

Looking to his left, the samurai saw Dexter running as he held his blade with two hands, one on the hilt and one against the blade, the pressure of the Techwing building up as it pushed him down. A plan was finally taking form in this warrior's mind, and Dexter was the final piece of the puzzle; Jack smirked and deliberately swiped a weak attack at the Techwing's helm, hoping that Dexter would pick up what he was doing.

The Techwing immediately countered the weak attack, swiping hard to knock Jack's sword out of position. It didn't realize, however, that it had fallen into a trap.

Dexter had watched and noticed the slight smirk on Jack's face. As he watched the deliberate weak attack, he caught on to the Samurai's thinking. Jack waited until the Techwing swiped its giant wings at Dexter, who blocked each lunge with his wrench; before he held his katana up high, activating its enchantment, and blessing it with the strength of the gods. Jumping up, Jack swiped down at its back, ripping it apart with a loud bash and letting it drop to the floor. To finish it off, Dexter plunged his wrench into the fusion carcass, and immediately electrocuted it; the now fallen Techwing was a smoking pile of scrap metal, the fusion matter spilling out of its chasis as if it were blood.

"We are not done yet." Dexter proclaimed, pointing to the file cabinet next to the medical wing. "There is a solution I need to start concocting and loading it into a certain device if we are to expunge these creatures from Tech Square."

Johnny, for once in these last few hours, didn't talk back at all, speeding back to retrieve his sisters from the panic room…and then crashing right into a computer console, to which Dexter winced in apparent pain. The damages to his laboratory would cost a king's ransom to repair.

Jack huffed in relaxation, looking over the Techwing's dead body as the fusion matter was spilling onto the floor, sinking into it and leaving all the disfigured and malformed mechanical parts behind. The amount of energy he had to dedicate to taking this creature down was ludicrous, even for him, he who took down the greatest evil being the world had seen for millennia. These Fusions were no laughing matter, at least now he could be sure of that.

Jack found it odd how much he wondered about this world. Though he was familiar with all the technology and equipment and languages, what he found odd were these new generation of heroes. The threats were stronger, more powerful than he could have imagined. And yet they were faced with a sense of guilt and demoralization from complicated matters. He could see a perfect example in the young hero that was waiting patiently in the medical bay. Like him, he found his way across time and space to prevent a future that was yet to come in order to save the world, and yet he could not join the battle. Surely the 10 minutes that Dexter spoke of were over by now. What was keeping this youngster, who's knowledge of the Fusion race could win them the day alone, from providing his services?

The samurai thought to the longest time, his 50 years stranded in the future that was once Aku. Blurs of depression, self pity, the loss of his blade, nearly committing seppuku upon the behest of the samurai that came before him. It was then that he could reconnect with the memories he pushed down to prepare for the fight. Ashi, once a servant to a great destroyer, became his savior. She taught him how to hope again. And now, this young hero recovered from the longest time, stranded for 2 days in a future that was Fuse. Perhaps he needed to know hope again.

Perhaps it was time he tried talking to Benjamin Tennyson.

* * *

"GET BACK, EVERYON'! GO! GO! GO!" Number Six shouted to the retreating operatives in the treehouse, all of whom were holding their nose. Their defensive at Hero's Square didn't hold at all. The fusion monsters began making their way through the treehouse, taking advantage of exposed wiring and possessing it. Now, gargantuan piles of wires were acting like headless-octopus arms, chasing operatives to their shocking doom, and these particular monsters chasing Bradley's team. All his mechanical and cybernetic limbs were opening up their weapon ports, firing with live rounds at whatever he could see that was green, evil, and coming right for him.

The 6-year old anthro-skunk used his one good targeting eye to strike a missile into the gelatinous pile of goo that creeped further the way of the escaping operatives.

The missile was grabbed by a thin vine of fusion matter, spiking out like a spider's web and being absorbed by the cluster of monsters. Things were not looking good at all. He whimpered in fear, not ready to face death itself in the eye. Though he had heard Death apparently sported a Caribbean accent, so at least he could go out with a laugh.

He heard a BOOM, like a thunderclap, from his remaining ear and tuned his 2x4 audio-receptor to hear. But he couldn't pay full attention while being slowly cornered by the wire monsters.

He covered his eyes with his remaining paw, gritting his teeth in fear, waiting for the inevitable. At least he managed to get the operatives to a safe location, but doubt resurfaced as he began fearing that the operatives were intercepted by more fusions. What if they were about to die too?!

All the young skunk could think at that moment was that Kuki could be there with him.

The pack of Shocktanglars slowly approached the whimpering and terrified KND cyborg. The lead monster raised a large tentacle to strike. Then...another BOOM was heard.

But it didn't come from outside.

It _came_ from outside.

A S.C.A.M.P.E.R. had rammed into the walls of this treehouse corridor, crushing all the Shocktanglars with the front grappling hooks and flat-nosed cockpit. Wood walls collapsed and fusion matter splattered everywhere, narrowly missing Bradley's organic parts.

The young skunk finally opened his eyes to see his rescuers in front of him, widening them in the instance of realization. Once the hatch opened up, his face burst with joy. The pilots weren't so happy, however.

"D-did I get'm?" said the still-concussed Number Four.

"Numbuh Four, I swear on my Mum's magazine collection...we are _never_ letting you fly the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. EVER again! With or without a concussion!" Number One's irate voice spoke up.

"Dude, not so loud!" Four shouted back. "'feels like I been hung upside down fer hours...and not in the Australian way...uuuugghhh..."

"We really can't stop crashing these things, can we?" spoke the very warm and innocent voice of Number Three...

...and Bradley was quick to run to her. "KUKI!" He cried in joy and relief. Looks like his wish came true.

"Bradley!" Three gasped and yelled with her ever-so-cheerful attitude. They embraced for a short time, but the time felt like so long for the both of them. They were both worried sick about each other upon this whole invasion hullaballoo.

"How've you been?! Have you been managing everything well? Have you been avoiding your toothbrush? Have you-"

"I'm fine, Kuki!" The skunk cheerfully chirped. "But these alien things 're-"

"We know! That's why we came back! Are they in the treehouse?"

"Guys? I dun' feel too good..." Number Four spoke while holding his head. But his plea fell on deaf ears, much to his annoyance, but the more he got angry, the more his head hurt. But it wouldn't stop hurting. But hey, maybe it'll stop hurting...eventually.

"Yeah. This giant egg just landed near all 'hose statues an' a bunch of green gooey monsters started attackin' everyone! People are runnin' and screamin' and we held 'em off as best as we could, but..." Bradley couldn't finish his sentence, and tried to focus back on the task at hand. "I-I-I told everyone to go to the Hangar bay, but I have no idea if the monsters got to them!"

Three stood up, and with the press of her NanoCom, loaded up her signature T.H.U.M.P.E.R, and now sported a look that could kill. Number One spun his dual guns around his fingers and put them in his vest pockets, summoning a B.O.T.T.L.E.R. rifle for devastating purpose.

Number Four got out a toy Sumo Slammer he had in his pocket. He looked dizzy.

Bradley stared at them with awe, and began activating his cybernetics, looking for however many rounds of artillery he had left. While doing this, Number One stepped forward and gave a badass line delivery.

"Sounds like we got an infestation, Number One." Three said.

"Well then. Let's begin extermination." Number One spoke confidently and loudly as he handed Number 6 a lightning rifle from the side of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. to add to his arsenal.

Frickin' LEGENDS.

But the legends couldn't notice how heavily Number Four was concussed...only finally noticing when Number Four flopped down hard on the floor.

All three of the operatives looked behind them. And for some reason, instead of feeling worried for the poor chap, they were annoyed.

And why wouldn't they be? He ruined their coolest dramatic moment yet!

"Dam-Dang it, Wally! You ruined our coolest dramatic moment yet!" Three shouted, breaking her usually joyful charm with an annoyed rant. Serves him right!

"Ttttthank you Misterrr Rainb-Monkyyy, Iwodove tdirect Sumosslammer crossoer..." said the now delirious Four, not noticing being dragged by the leg down the wooden floorboards. "Lemme figh ese alens irst..."

* * *

Ben continued trying, trying to get back up. But while his injury was healed in surprisingly quick time (Dexlabs medicine normally would do that), he still felt a little sore. He was able to deal with the pain enough to sit back up, but he couldn't straighten his back without straining his vertebrae, and that hurt like HELL.

The medical bay wasn't entirely soundproof. He had been hearing most of everything loud clearly, including Dexter's turmoil towards dealing with this first wave of Fusions. He had heard a lot of slicing and dicing, though he wasn't sure with or by who, but there was a lot of shouting and screeching. He didn't hear the commotion that was supposedly taking place outside, but putting two and two together wasn't hard.

They were here.

And the world needed their Alien Hero back on their feet.

"Okay, okay...One..." He held his hands down on the med-bed, ready to face the pain, hopefully overcome it.

Quickly breathing in measured huffs of air, he tried the next step. "...Two-ACK!"

There was the pain again. Sharp as ever, sore as a sprain, and nothing about it felt like it was healing. He sat back down, catching himself by holding onto the bed. Hanging his head down in defeat, he took a deep breath and sighed in minute frustration. They needed his help more than ever, but something more was holding him back...not just the back-pain. He knew what it was, but couldn't find the strength to confront it.

He heard footsteps approaching his door, fully expecting Dexter to come in. He could tell that Dexter's apparent disbelief didn't hold, and he would relish telling him how wrong he was. But at the same, he couldn't help but feel bad for shouting him, especially towards how Dexter revealed he handled his absence. Ever since Gwen disappeared, his cousins and family were scared out of their minds; they couldn't bear to lose anyone else, and that more than likely put the boy genius in a difficult position. What was he supposed to say? He had to apologize to his friend.

The door began to slide open, and Ben turned to face him with words ready. "Look, I-"

But as Ben turned around, who he met was very different from who he expected.

The man was Asian, clearly, but looked completely out of time. He wore a white and grey robe, also wearing some kind of belt with red tassels on one end. He had his hair tied up like that of a Samurai, and he had a scar on the right side of his face. He was calm in his posture, mood; everything about him radiated feelings of peace.

Jack mentally sighed as the teenager continued to stare at him with assumed confusion. Maybe it was finally in order to update his wardrobe.

"Who're you?"

"A friend." Jack told him in peace.

Ben paused, not taking the response seriously enough. "No seriously...who are you?"

"You may call me Jack, if you prefer."

Then the gears began to shift in Ben's mind. And a quick glance back at his attire further corroborated his working theory. A samurai called Jack sounded vaguely familiar. "Like...that samurai guy?" Ben recalled, beginning to remember the dreary history classes echoing in his mind. "From my history classes?"

The man's quaint nod confirmed everything. Ben, however, was still reeling from the shock of everything else, that his reaction to this miraculous visit from the world's first superhero hadn't yet hit him. All that could go through his head was why...why was this guy here? But quickly enough, that sense of awe began overwhelming him, clouding his speech, becoming unsure of what he wanted to say to _the world's first superhero_. He had to refocus himself. Ask him. Ask him why he's here.

"T-The guy whose story they based Sumo Slammers 3 on?" Ben asked in a trivial sense.

Well that was a bust.

Excitement and trepidation got the better of Ben. He had no idea how to say what he wanted to say. Luckily, Jack wasn't about to throw a table over it.

"They used my story for what?" He played along.

"I...uh...you are him, right?" Ben asked again in a moment of doubt.

Jack smiled again, mirthfully chuckling. "Yes. I am."

A blizzard of questions were now breezing into Ben's brain. How was this possible?

"Should I...even ask how you got here?"

"I wish I could say, but it would be another story to digest. All you need to know is that I intercepted your message from the Future. I came back here to help."

Ben looked back up at the samurai in disbelief and awe. "Wait, the message made its way to you?!"

"A strange coincidence, is it not?" Jack joked, acknowledging the absurd timing and incredible luck at play here. "I think retelling this story wouldn't be favorable...especially in the aftermath of your own." Jack said, comforting the confused hero.

"Did...uh...Did Dex tell you 'bout that?"

"Not entirely...but I know a tired warrior. I know the look of despair and hopelessness."

"Poetic." Ben sardonically replied. "You don't have to call me a warrior, dude. You're the one with 10 times more experience than me."

"Wisdom does not measure our ability to lose or feel pain, or regret over our actions." Jack told him.

"Heh..my Grandpa would probably disagree." he responded. But a glance at the Samurai's raised eyebrow prompted him to elaborate. "He's uh...he's an ex-astronaut and retired space cop. Tha-That's what I meant." He concluded. But even then, more elaboration was needed. "He once told me that being a Plumber, that whole job, learning how to make the right call, came with a lot of sacrifice. He screwed up more times first before things ever got better. And I've been doing this hero thing for 5 years...well, 3 years technically, and I've screwed up. But it never stops. It never feels like I'm capable of making the right call, and even after everything, it's...it's like a bundle of self-doubt."

Jack smirked. "Your grandfather sounds like a wise man. What he said remains true. But nevertheless, letting the doubt eat your soul...will fail you more so. But your grandfather would also know this much: wisdom is a measure of our actions and our will to act. It is in building off these mistakes that we achieve victory; it is what makes us human."

"But what if that's not good enough?" Ben raised his voice, frowning upon the reassurance that the samurai was providing, and calming down upon meeting his serene stare. He shouldn't have shouted like that, not to a legend like Jack. He repeated his question in a softer tone. "What if that's not good enough?"

Another raised eyebrow, this time in contemplation as opposed to confusion, continued making Ben talk.

"I never know if it's good enough." The alien hero admitted. "I joke and I act immature a lot to hide that fear, maybe even to make others feel less scared...but when I'm out there...I have to be more than human, literally and figuratively. They count on me, and if I fail, then I fail them...and I lose them."

Jack remained silent as Ben looked to him, nodding slightly to ease the boy into being comfortable to talk about his feelings.

"And...it got worse with this whole thing. The invasion and the...the experiment." Ben admitted. "I...at this future I was at...the goal was to get back here, and that's what we did...but then they started saying that my absence in the beginning gave them a serious disadvantage, and that my safety was their main goal. I understood what that meant, but...I saw all these people die because I couldn't do anything, and I let them down." His eyes began to water as he stared into the concrete floor. "And the worst part is I don't know what will happen now, with everything suddenly colliding, a war's coming, I-I..." Ben stopped in his words, crippled by the weight of the world on his shoulders and the doubt in his mind. A few tears dropped onto the floor in anguish.

Jack could see how much pain the boy was in internally. He more than empathized with Ben's plight. The self-doubt, the failure, the frustration and the loss of life before him. All familiar to the aged warrior.

"Without you, we would not be nearly as prepared as we are now. Do you know when these invaders arrive with their planet?"

He sniffed a little, gaining a little composure to speak up. "In a month. Approximately. That's what Mandark told me on my second day in the Future."

"Then we have more than enough time to prepare. I can guarantee that without your arrival, these early Terrafusers would not have been taken nearly as seriously as they are now."

"Whether or not Dexter believed me...I don't know. He probably did eventually, all things considered." Ben realized. "But Fuse sent more fusions, didn't he? And it caught everyone off-guard. What if this is how the future really begins? They lose and...I fail them."

"It doesn't sound like failure is the only reason you fear these invaders, Ben." Jack implied. "What do you fear?"

Ben froze, thinking back to the statues at Hero's Square that he saw. His best dreams subverted into his worst nightmares. "My...I don't wanna be forgotten, and I know that sounds selfish but...I fear being forgotten because of it. I don't want to fail, I don't wanna sit still while the world burns...but the worst part is that I don't know if I'll be able to live up to what people want...who they want me to be for them. And...and going into that future proved to me that I couldn't be a hero for them. I failed...and I might as well be forgotten." Ben lamented. "I don't deserve to be remembered if all I can do is let people down."

A thick pause came between them, with Jack continuing to remain silent, drawing up the words Ben needed to hear. It was a delicate situation, and a test to himself. If he could not give Ben his hope back, what chance did he have of having that same hope? Carefully breathing, and finishing meditating on his response, Jack engaged.

"Someone of your age told me not too long ago, that what happens in this world does not need to be scripted. There is no point in a life of contemplation, or if you seek answers in the uncertain." he began, recalling that moment Buttercup had given him a spark of hope. His experiences in this new future may have been limited, but his wisdom clearly held no bounds in understanding Ben's anguish. "To be forgotten is not a consequence of failure. It is a consequence of giving up, and losing hope. And in our conversation you have proven to me that it is not easy for you to give up. The challenges we face ahead of us will only further test you in this, but it is up to _you_ to maintain your spirit."

"But what if nothing works ou-" Ben nearly finished before being interrupted by the wise samurai. Turning his head to meet his aged eyes, he continued listening.

"I am _here_ , and why _I_ of all the people of the world is unknown to me, but now I know there is a new world ahead, a new world to mark my own way. If the time comes where we must despair, then we will despair, but the time of now holds no chains on the future when we have been given the chance to change it, thus we have no reason to stop making our mark in history." Jack said. "There is no need to think of a future anymore, be it past or upcoming. It remains our choice to make the future our own. And the most important parts in all of this are the will to _act_ , and the will to _hope_." Jack concluded with an assuring smile. Patting his hand on Ben's back, he could tell that whatever he said, however nonsensical it must've sounded to the young hero, had some kind of impact.

He felt the need to continue, though. Perhaps one final part of his story was in order. "Ben, I once had a friend in Aku's future. He and I were similar in many ways, different only in our...um...cultures." Jack visibly cringed as he remembered the screeching sound of the Bagpipes, scratching and tearing at his eardrums, nearly driving him insane. No matter what brotherhood he held with the Scotsman, he could never forgive his taste in terrible music. "As a consequence of my quest, the future he lived in no longer exists, and I may never know if he lives the same life, if he will even exist at all. What I did weighs down on my conscience every day."

"So how do you know whether or not he wanted that?"

"He was among the bravest men I ever knew." Jack lamented, mourning his death and apparent non-existence. "The moment he truly met me, he knew that helping me would mean his death and undoing. I cannot tell myself that he would have wanted it otherwise, no matter how much I doubt it. We have to keep hoping for better things."

Ben thought to that hard, thinking back to his narrow escape from the future. Dexter, Finn, Mandark, Number Two, Number Five, and so many others risked their lives to send him back to the past and save the world. They knew that the war was lost, the invasion was succeeding, and they were hanging by a thread. They put themselves in front of him to make sure that their second chance counted. The Scotsman sounded like he did the same for Jack, and at this point Ben was realizing a lot of commonalities with their missions.

Jack really was speaking from experience. And despite falling into that abyss of self-doubt and misery, he made it back up. He triumphed.

Maybe...

Maybe he could too.

Out of the corner of Ben's mind, he realized...he was no longer in pain. The soreness finally left his body.

[Injury fully healed] Computress notified over the intercomm, confirming that Ben's treatment was finally over. But the eavesdropping AI had a little more to say to the alien hero. [Commence Complimentary Statement: I conclude that I speak for everyone when I say...[loading]...it is a pleasure to have you back, Mr. Tennyson.]

Ben stretched his back slowly, hesitant to avoid the feeling of the sharp pain of soreness. But to his relief, he felt nothing, nothing that felt like being stabbed in the back with a thumb-tack. He had a great grin on his face, exuberant about finally being able to stand up and walk. He laughed in disbelief. These med-beds really worked like magic. He turned to Jack, who had an unfazed expression. "Not even amazed?" Ben asked.

"Ben, I spent half a century in a dystopian metropolitan future with advances in the world occurring every minute, and I _rode a motorcycle_." the samurai bragged. "I'm not surprised, young man, rather I suppose I am excited for what awaits me here." Jack finished with a smile...

...something broken almost immediately with Dexter's loud voice over the intercom.

_"Jack! We are in need of further assistance."_

Jack's thoughtful smile quickly transformed into a glare of determination and objective. He was needed. "Though it seems what awaits me is more trouble." Jack lamented as he unsheathed his blade. "I will see you soon."

"Soon?" Ben questioned, catching the Samurai's attention. "Why bother waiting? We're needed."

* * *

Captain Calan sat idly in the armored truck as it sped to the city of Townsville, the Providence soldiers around him quickly assembling and arming their weapons for what they had heard was an Alpha-level alert. There was panic in the streets, and it spread like wildfire in the city. The report said something about a major commotion in the local park, and also that certain superheroes were already on the case. He had been given strict orders to not engage the Powerpuff Girls, but he didn't know if his men would follow that order willingly.

What confused him, however, was that the report also mentioned something about green aliens and a meteor. If it was aliens they were dealing with, wouldn't it have been better to call in SECT? Then again, the situation was escalating fast; by the time he received his orders to investigate, aliens may have not gotten involved yet.

Finally arriving at Townsville Park, the agents of Providence put on their masks and got to work quickly, arming themselves and turning on a private NanoCom channel for all of them to communicate. They unloaded the armored truck and raced towards the gates...

...before stopping dead in their tracks on Calan's signal. It didn't necessarily look like the heroes were winning, but it looked like they were trying their best to contain the spawns to the Park. Calan calmly assessed the situation, trying to see how his squad could help while the metahumans did most of the heavy lifting. He figured to go for the most basic containment protocol.

"Men, form a perimeter around the park. Anything that looks green, hostile, and like Johansen's dish detergent, I want shot on sight. I don't care if it takes you a full magazine clip to kill just one."

"And the enhanced vigilantes, sir?" one agent inquired, clearly referring to the girls. "Do we bring in the metahumans?"

Calan's earlier suspicions concerning his men appeared to be correct. "Clearly, soldier, you've never heard of Townsville before. Or the Registration Initiative. We can't interfere with their good work. " Calan barked back, soon relaying his orders into his radio. "All Providence units within the vicinity of Townsville, this is Captain Calan with new orders. Our goal is to contain and evacuate as many citizens as possible, and cordon off Townsville Park. _Nothing gets **in** or **out**._" He fiercely commanded.

"Sir, is this something we should call Rex and the team for?"

"Rex's team is held up handling an EVO outbreak all the way in Marzipan." Calan ordered. "We can't afford to waste their time. **Now dispatch those units**!"

"Right away, sir!" the other agents loudly saluted, moving along the sidewalk and setting up shop across the fences. Calan took off his standard Providence mask with a scowl, revealing his scarred face, intently looking at the battle ahead of him and ready to execute his own orders.

The battle in front of him, however, was far more chaotic and difficult to manage than it appeared from far away. The girls were no longer in the air, punching and zapping as many of the spawns as they could, shaking off spawns from their legs and shoulders as they overwhelmed them. They were getting drenched with an inordinate amount of fusion matter, which was quickly dripping off them and retreating into the soil. They were not winning this battle, and were barely holding a stalemate, and it wasn't helped by the spawns adapting and regenerating at a faster rate to combat the girls. They were learning quickly.

"Blossom! They're regenerating faster!" Bubbles exclaimed.

Gritting her teeth, the determined Blossom kept fighting, no matter how tired she was feeling. "Keep at 'em! Remember how we took them down before! Overwhelm them so the spawns will have less energy!"

"Before they overwhelm us, right?!" Buttercup shouted back. Looking behind her though... "Uh...Blossom?"

Turning around, the KND operatives had apparently bolted.

"WHAT?!" Blossom screamed in confusion, but soon after, she heard someone call from further away. It was Number Five, with Number Two's pilot hat poking out from behind the massive amount of melting debris, whose fires were extinguished well into the battle.

"OVER HERE!" Five shouted, signaling them to join them over there, with Two poking out and sniping a few spawns amongst the horde to distract them.

And distract it did indeed, now having the undivided attention of Fuse's wrath. But it bought the girls enough time to escape their position and quickly fly over to join the KND behind the debris.

Once behind, the girls knew that the spawns wouldn't give up that easily, and so held their arms against the wall of the wrecked S.C.A.M.P.E.R's hull, expecting the spawns to pile on the pressure. To avoid side attacks, Five threw Two a P.0.P gun and they both got to work creating an ice wall and ceiling large enough to hid them.

Hiding behind a legion of fusion spawns with a weak material for protection...this felt oddly familiar. And Number Two was well aware of that as well.

"I need a break from the deja-vu..."

"At least we're hiding behind metal instead of a slightly durable wood table." Blossom joked, she too remembering their earlier predicament from 5 years ago.

"Wouldn't bet on that..." Two spoke, worry still ever-present in his voice. "the first time we saw these things, they disintegrated some kid's gun! These things were holding back last time!" He was practically biting his fingernails in anxiety, much to the annoyance of Buttercup.

"Yeah, we figured that out!" the toughest fighter, now trying to barricade the makeshift igloo in a fight for dear life, said with the same frantic anxiety.

"Providence has no idea what they're in for..." Blossom realized, remembering seeing the units continue to cordon off the area. "We need to draw them away from the perimeter!"

"We don't have that kind of authority, though. We get closer, and they might start asking questions! It's not worth a chance!" Number Two shouted, flinching back when one projectile came crashing through the popsicle ceiling, and came within an inch of his face. Blossom, hating pessimism as always, saw the operative's point. Another crash would only escalate the situation further than it already was, and risk more surrounding citizens' lives. Moreover, if they were all hurdled in one flavored igloo, the spawns would make an easy target out of them.

But Number Five disagreed. "Well any chance is better than NO chance, Numbuh Two!" she said as she reached for her NanoCom, shouting into its radio station. "Sector V command! Sector V command! This is Numbuh Five orderin' for _immediate_ backup!" Five screamed into the NanoCom. But nothing was receiving from the other side. "Sector V command! Numbuh Six!" Five shouted louder into the device. "Bradley! Dangit! Numbuh Five can't get a signal!"

"Sounds like they're preoccupied!" Bubbles noted.

"Guess you're stuck with us." Buttercup said with a sheepish grin.

"No offense or anythin'," Five began, trying to make her next phrase carefully, "but Numbuh Five ain't sure that's any better!" Another blast of energy penetrated the metal barricade, a mere inch away from her face, and the spawns flooded in, quickly overwhelming them before Blossom sealed the igloo tight with her freeze breath.

But it wasn't quick enough, as a solitary fusion spawn that made it through was now trying to bite Bubbles' face off, jumping her and wriggling in her hands as she caught it, resisting any attempts by Bubbles to throw it away.

"Get off! GET OFF!" Bubbles pleaded to no avail. It lunged and shrieked inhumanly, using all it's force while Bubbles tried to hold it off. Buttercup tried to intervene, but was aptly thrown into Blossom, making the two rather indisposed.

Bubbles was hanging on for dear life, but the fusion spawn didn't seem all too interested in that, now reaching for Bubbles' backside, which would have been vacant, were it not for...

_*rrrrrRRRRIIIPP!*_

" **OCTI!** " Bubbles screamed as one of the 8 tentacles of her beloved stuffed-animal-turned-backpack was ripped off, chewed, and promptly consumed by the spawn in the chaos...

...and Bubbles was _not_ happy. The joy and the laughter was now living up to another meaning of her name, _**bubbling**_ with rage and pain. Her eyes glowed a dangerous glow of baby blue, gritting her teeth and seething with rage. Her sisters looked upon her and their faces sunk. They had only seen this look so many times before; it was a rarity because no one ever messed with their sister and got to speak another word ever again. She responded to the spawn with something spine-shivering.

"YOU. _HURT._ **MY.** _**FRIEND** **!**_ " And she screamed, letting her heat vision loose and eviscerating every molecule she could of that putrid, disgusting, and defiling creature.

But the evisceration of this one being, only further encouraging the army of spawns to bang and pummel the icy doors.

"Well...that was tearrible..." Two joked, trying to bring some levity to the situation.

No one liked the pun. Bubbles even shed a tear over it...not that kind of tear. The homophone.

"I...I'll shut up now."

"Numbuh Five's thinkin' we can make a human sacrifice..." she said with gritted teeth to her best friend.

* * *

Walking to meet Dexter, Jack wanted to make sure that there wouldn't be another Techwing situation. He kept his katana sheathed and held it by his side. "Have you sealed the breach?" He asked serenely.

"Yes, I have." Dexter confirmed. He then pointed outside the glass door, calling attention to the Tech Square Terrafuser spasming once again. "But there waits a new batch of fusion spawns outside. Take care of them."

"At once." Jack cooperated, not looking back for one moment and going to do his job. Dexter turned around to face his computer just as Ben was entering the room. Looking over, he frowned with a restrained regret. He confined his best friend to a room for an injury he caused, barely believed his story until the last second, and didn't bother to return to him or inform him. Dexter always prided himself for remaining professional and trying to hide his arrogance and emotion as much as he could.

But he failed the most this time, and his arrogance got the better of him. He was feeling so sorry for what he did.

"I...I wanted to apologize...for-"

But Ben, seemingly enlightened and re-energized, stopped his apology mid-sentence, with a kind sense of understanding. "It's alright...I'll call my mom later. You didn't know what to do." Ben admitted, forgiving his friend. "I can't say it's what I would've done, but thank you for trying."

Such a simple exchange with so few words spoken, and yet their confidence and friendship in one another had never felt stronger. Dexter let a smirk loose, truly content that Ben could forgive him. Because that's what heroes do.

Some of the lab scientists weren't as sensitive, though.

"Dexter and Benjy, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-"

"Damnit NOT NOW, Fassy!" shouted Anthony Automata.

Ben nodded and walked closer by the Computer, leaning in to discuss something that boggled his mind for a while now. "We do need to talk about how you treat your sister, though." He told him. He remained forgiving of his friend, but he couldn't fathom Dexter doing something so horrible.

"You do know that she is not just an aspiring ballerina, right? She is apparently training to become a paramedic." Dexter responded, revealing all kinds of new information.

"So?"

"So how could a paramedic-in-training not realize that some buttons must not be pushed?!"

"That's not the point, though."

"(Sigh), whatever..." With a sigh of exhaustion, Dexter hand-waved the conversation and returned back to work. Moving to the large computer monitor, he began typing at fast speeds, setting a new plan in motion. "Computress? Establish a connection with all current heroes and KND operatives on the field. We are giving them a new set of instructions."

[Affirmative; establishing connection] Computress complied. [Channel opened: connection established]

"Am I clear on all comm-channels?" Dexter spoke loudly and clearly. He waited patiently to get responses, but it didn't take much time at all, much to his luck and success.

 _"We're a little busy right now!"_ Buttercup spoke.

 _"These things just don't die!"_ Two said, using his own commlink.

 _"Major MAJOR casualty!"_ Bubbles spoke loudly, catching Dexter's concern for a second. A major casualty?! What could have happened? Was someone in need of a cybernetic limb replacement? Perhaps they needed an antidote for fusion matter poisoning (if it was capable of poisoning). Or maybe someone had actually DIED in action. Well, in actuality... _"MY STUFFED ANIMAL WAS **MAAAAIIIMED**!" _She promptly lost his concern.

 _"We read you loud and crystal clear, Dr. McPherson."_ Number One spoke, clearly running and with two sets of footsteps behind him. Dexter could hear moaning grunts coming from Number Three, as though she was carrying someone's comatose body. _"Might I ask-"_

"Not yet, Number One. This is an important update. Additional orders will follow, but listen closely for now." Dexter commanded, press the speaker button and keeping Computress on standby. "Ben, come with me. I need you to deliver something."

Ben followed Dexter to a corner of the room, past the vaulted door and came into a room where the most impossible things he had never seen before laid dusting. This was Dexter's Laboratory archive, where he kept some of his most prized inventions. From a literal think tank to three sets of robot exosuits, it was a massive collection of items. But Dexter only sought out one. A cylindric piece of metal with several ports on its dome-shaped backside, and a blinking yellow light on the top. Dexter picked it up, dusted it off, and began pressing a few standby buttons. Setting it down, he quickly opens it up and finds loose relay wires. He makes short work of it, reconnecting the relays and allowing the device begins working. It shoots out a short antenna from the area with the blinking yellow light. Dexter has a smirk of success, having found a weapon from the not so distant past, ready to be used once again.

Stepping out of Dexlabs' glorified closet, Dexter returned to the main area, where the call was still going. He could hear more grunts and screams of effort against the endless hordes of fusion spawns. Ben followed him to the console top, where the boy genius began again.

"This," Dexter loudly spoke to make sure everyone was listening, pointing to the device for Ben to understand, "is the imagination energy transducer. We used this device to fight the fusions in the previous encounter 5 years ago. I was planning to use it for the synchronization engine before Mandark's message had been intercepted by Jack. When he arrived, we learned it wasn't necessary." Dexter explained, at least getting the attention of Johnny, and across the communication line, Bubbles was also quite fascinated.

Ben looked at the device with...hesitancy. All that immediately came to his mind was the last time they had to deal with this, and how _well_ that had turned out. "Did you...y'know, make it easier to use?"

"You mean to ask if I had discarded all of Mandark's additions from the transducer. Of course I did." Dexter confirmed. "This time, it'll be upgraded to MY specifications. There will be no room or margin for error this time."

 _"Where are you going to take it?_ "

"To Townsville. Back to Mojo Jojo's observatory on top of the volcano. We can use the transducer to project rays of imagination energy to counter the Fusions. We know it has beat them in the past, and I am not about to rule out this potential weakness on the idea that they are more powerful than before." Dexter reasoned. "His telescope, if modified correctly, can project the appropriate amount of lumens and joules to incapacitate the fusion spawns, perhaps even kill them.

"And what if he's there?"

 _"He's not!"_ Blossom confirmed.

 _"Yeah we sent him to Fuddgate last week!"_ Buttercup elaborated. _"Hnnggg!"_ She groaned as she maintained the barricade against the rampaging spawns.

"It is even worth trying to use it on the Terrafusers themselves." Dexter hoped. "As for Sector V, I understand your base is in Bellwood, and thus in another city, which is why I am going to send someone over to help. Hang on tight."

 _"Understood!"_ Number One confirmed. His call signed out.

Dexter turned to Ben, who was listening closely. "Ben, you will take Blossom and Bubbles with you to the volcano. They can help you modify the telescope, and they know how to accomplish it. Do you accept this mission?"

"Got it." Ben said with a sharp nod as he took the transducer from Dexter's hands. The thing was heavy, jeez, really heavy! How was Dexter able to carry it with such ease?! Whatever those purple gloves were hiding, it was nothing to sneeze at. Holy crap. Ben looked back up, shaking off the moment of bewilderment he had. Looking back up at Dex, he gave a firm nod. "You can count on me." he said confidently.

 _"See you when you get here, Ben!"_ Buttercup shouted while firing her heat vision.

Two also joined in before signing off the call. _"Remember to make an entrance!"_

 _"It's like a sleepover! It'll be fun!"_ Bubbles added.

 _"Guess I'll make a sweet looking diversion!"_ Buttercup reasoned. _"Again."_ She signed off the call shortly after.

Taking out his NanoCom, the very same that Finn had given him from the future, he scanned the transducer into his inventory, digitizing it and storing it in the Lyoko subspace...gosh was that ever useful. Imagine if it got corrupted by an AI malfunction. Anyhow, once the device was securely in his inventory, he placed his NanoCom in his pocket, extended his forearm and readied the Omnitrix.

_Finally._

He needed someone fast. The Powerpuff Girls were barely holding on, so he needed to give them backup quickly. Perhaps Cannonbolt could give him the speed and force he needed to get there in record time. Granted, he would have usually gone with XLR8, but this damn watch barely gave him what he wanted half the time, he figured he would just settle.

"Please be Cannonbolt, please be Cannonbolt, please be Cannonbolt..." he wished out loud as Dexter and the lab staff watched him intently. With the pressing-down of his hand, a transformation occurred.

Skin began turning blue, his cranium extended backwards into a fine point, he began hunching over, his fingers merging into one another and shaping into long claws, and his shoes disappeared into thick pronged toes grasping bio-organic balls. A striped tail sprouted out of him in record time, and next came the uniform: a black bodysuit with a white space covering the torso with a green outline surrounding it. A green arrow marked the area of his pelvis, akin to a belt, and the bodysuit extended down to the form's knees and elbows. A familiar hourglass symbol formed onto his chest, and in a blinding green light, the transformation into XLR8 was complete.

In a surprising subversion of expectations, he got the alien he truly wanted.

"H-HOLY HELL!" Ben shouted behind the alien form's mask, immediately retracting it into his skull. "Reverse psychology! IT WORKED! HOLY **CRAP**! **YEASS!** " The energetic velociraptor-like alien shoved its fists into the air and cheered in victory. He got the alien he wanted! After the minute celebration, not another second was wasted, and XLR8 sped into and shattered the glass doors of Dexlabs, making its way to Townsville...much to the irritation of the building owner.

"They can use the door, for Darwin's sake. They can use the goddamn door..." He muttered as he turned around and stepped away, pulling out a NanoCom display that replaced the lack of doors and lack of windows with a metal shutter. Soon after, he came face to face with a toe-tapping blonde teen with flaming red-highlights in his hair. He seemed eager to do something.

"So." Johnny said. "Got anything for me?" Johnny asked. He found Dexter surprised at his sudden willingness to volunteer. The former reasoned it with a simple idea. "Thought it wouldn't hurt to ask."

In an instant of deep thought, Dexter moved past him with a surprising task. "Pair your NanoCom with Computress. If you lack one, take a prototype from the table, and try to head to the coordinates as assigned. Fusions are holding the Kids Next Door's Sector V treehouse hostage. You are needed to aid them and provide any further assistance."

That certainly caught the thrill-seeking teen off-guard. Wasn't this guy calling him an idiot just minutes ago? What happened then, he wondered. He thought to take his own advice. He thought it wouldn't hurt to ask. "What happened to you doubting me and everything?" Johnny asked, spitting out his gum in a trash can. It...made a whip-crack noise? Is that supposed to be funny? "You kept me on the sidelines so long, you could barely remember I was here. And frankly you've already got a speedster with that alien dude."

"Frankly, Mr. Test, I _do not_ doubt that you _might_ be faster than XLR8, and despite your inexperience with your speed, I am sure you would be more than willing to experience a proper test run with them. Besides, I understand you do have _other_ powers, do you not?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"Then use _those_ instead if your speed is too volatile; run along and go play superhero. _Now_."

After a moment of silence, a devilish grin formed on Johnny's face, and his feet began vibrating at supersonic speeds. He was so ready to charge and give these powers a proper test run.

But then his sisters appeared behind him, just as he was about to get set. He immediately petrified, but his eye twitched in utter frustration.

"If it's all the same to you, Dr. McPherson..." Susan spoke...

"...we'd like to keep our little bro here." and Mary finished.

Exchanging a look, Dexter saw the two sisters adamantly defend their brother's place here. But he had little time to deal with any of them. The world was at stake and her best defenders were being overrun. They were running out of options. "I will maintain contact with him. He will not escape my metaphorical eye. Right now, Test sisters, your brother can save an entire treehouse full of children. It is illogical to deny him this chance."

"He's a superhero all the time back in Porkbelly." Susan argued. "This isn't about a chance to be a superhero again."

Mary continued her sister's well-founded and worrisome argument. "This is about our _little brother_ facing off against an invasive _assimilating_ species of what is basically toxic bacteria. If there's any fight he might die in, it would be this one over Bling-Bling Boy."

Dexter was indeed faced with a minor moral dilemma, one that under more normal circumstances would lead to him conceding and giving the girls their choice. But too much was at stake for those kinds of thoughts. "Right now, I do not see another choice. You cannot weigh your brother's safety over the lives of an entire treehouse of children." Dexter rebutted. This was getting ludicrously arrogant, even for him. "Besides. You wanted to test his new powers? This is your chance."

That piqued their interest; the thought of testing their brother's mutant abilities never ceased to hook them into something. And this time, unlike most times, Johnny himself seemed on-board with it. But they would need to think it over, right?

As they were deep in thought, they were still holding Johnny back, and he was _really_ getting tired of just staying in one place.

* * *

Calan felt like a little kid at the local town arcade again, shooting approaching enemy after enemy, scoring a few points, etcetera. It felt invigorating, exciting, but nothing about this moment of euphoria clouded where he was at the moment: shooting spawnlings of a hostile alien army that could kill him with the right touch. It wasn't anything like an EVO, but Providence agents like him were prepared for anything, and were willing to help everyone they could. He had already dispatched all available and local units to patrol the streets. Nothing would leave or cross his sight without him knowing.

That's why this next moment is so freaking funny to the narrator.

"Uh...sir?" said a Providence agent that stopped firing to turn around. "You said not to let anything in or out, right?"

"I did say that, agent!" Calan confirmed, eyes still focused on the targets.

"And you said it had to look green and evil, right?"

"Green and hostile!"

"Okay, but what about THAT GUY?!"

"What about who-?"

Not even a chance to glimpse at who the agent was referring to, and suddenly the wind attacks him as a black-and-blue blur streaks across him and discombobulates his senses for the tiniest moment. Hell, some of the agents even were knocked off balance, shouting in shock and total surprise, falling over the fence and into the perimeter bushes.

If only things were nearly as joyful in the center of the park, because the heroes were on their last legs. They dealt with an onslaught, a dismemberment, and this had to be their third igloo now. They had no idea...they had no idea how much more they could take.

But lucky for them, hope had just arrived.

"Hey uglies!" an alien voice shouted from a long distance afar. It echoed through the winds and trees, and drew all the spawns' attention. Before they could even look in the right direction, a series of streaks zoomed around them, past them, on top of them, and into them, taking them out like a bundle of balloons. "I'm right here!" The voice shouted, giving the remaining spawns and the heroes a chance to look for their attacker and respective new defender.

It was Ben, shifting back to human form from XLR8 as he ran towards, decelerating and ready to kick some more alien butt.

"Alright everybody! It's hero time!" Ben shouted, reaching for his watch, and slamming on his watch. He didn't care what alien he transformed into at this point. Whatever he got would be just enough to kick some alien butt.

As he charged forward mid-transformation, another hero enthusiastically followed. "Oh yeah!" Buttercup cried out in response. "Now THAT'S a plan I can TOTALLY AGREE WITH! YOU LOSERS ARE FRIED!" Joining Ben to impulsively join the fight, she rocketed off the ground with extreme force, followed by her signature streak of green light.

Out came Cannonbolt, skidding across the dirt before firing himself into the air with a blast of sheer force. Curling back up, he made a quick descent as though in a pinball machine. landing a major blow to the Fusion monsters before him. He triggered another transformation, this time into the mighty Arctiguana, and froze any recovering spawns that jumped out at him.

He quickly shifted to Ghostfreak as the others watched in awe, phasing his body through the chunks of ice and dragging the thrashing fusion spawns out with him, feeding them to his lovecraftian set of tentacles and making short work of them. Each of their bodies disintegrated into the soil and returned to the Terrafuser. Ben continued changing every few seconds to keep the battle in his favor, and Ghostfreak was switched out for another classic: Diamondhead, who began producing as many sharp crystal spikes as he could to hold back the fusion spawns. Snapping out of their awe, the girls and the kids joined Ben as they zapped more and more with their heat vision, and Two and Five began chucking 2x4 grenades pulled from their NanoComs while continuing using their automatic weapons.

For a while, it looked like they actually stood a chance at overwhelming the spawn rate.

But a glance to the Terrafuser told Ben that wouldn't happen any time soon. The green meteor began glowing and pulsating even more than he had seen before. It was clearly producing less spawns, but with each new batch, they glowed brighter and looked greener.

It was dedicating more energy into making more powerful minions, Ben realized. At that moment, letting his guard down for the slightest second, one of the spawns knocked his hand out of balance; he had to shake the spawn off, but the opening it gave the putrid little creatures was enough to begin overwhelming the hell out of him. The girls followed suit, and the KND were starting to run severely low on ammo.

He couldn't hold this defense forever, Ben realized, but at this point they had no choice. The Petrosapien form was forced to chuck a shard hard into the ground and pummeled his fists to let it sprout into a large crystal barrier so they could be safe from the spawns until they configured a new strategy. But unfortunately for Ben, his current idea was not well received by the others. For them, it was back to square one of being cornered.

"What?" the diamond-headed Ben asked.

"We are literally back where we started, dude!" Two shouted.

"What'd you expect? I'd just _completely K.O these aliens_ that decimated this world in _record time_?!"

"Yeah, you said that decimating thing took a year!" Two couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"And one of these things _alone_ can manage to take out an entire army! They held _you_ gals to a stalemate, right?" Ben explained and exclaimed, drawing more concerned looks from the Powerpuffs. "The only reason I'm able to land better hits on them is because I've learned how to use these things called Nanos; I activated one on my way here! Plus...because I got a little more time to harness the bio-chemical produced by nanites-"

"Oh, how convenient, you get better powers than us because you decided to _breathe_ in the apocalyptic hellscape!"

"Breathe?! Are you kidding me?!"

 _"If I may ask,"_ Dexter piped over the comm channel, _"what did you say you used to fight these Fusions?"_

"It's complicated. We don't have time to talk about them because I only have so few of them. And I don't even know if they're compatible with everyone else."

"Then tell us what you know about the Terrafusers! How can we destroy them?!" Blossom interrogated, at this point quite desperate for answers for a seemingly unwinnable scenario. But Ben stared back at her with what she could infer was a look of lament. She couldn't quite tell past the Petrosapien makeover and limited facial expressions. But whatever it was, it kept Ben quiet, thinking.

"...These things can't be destroyed, but without a healthy supply of fusion matter and a little dividing and conquering, they'll take incredibly long to regenerate. We'll try to keep the spawn rate at a minimum while you three distract the spawns and spread out their numbers, but we have to get to that tower and use the transducer! It's still our best bet."

"Will that even take it out?" Two asked.

"It won't, because the Terrafuser _will_ regenerate eventually. But it'll buy us enough time to cordon this Park off with some containment shields."

 _"Providence can help with that! I sold my containment shields to them and every unit arrives with them."_ Dexter spoke into the comm channel enthusiastically. _"But what about the Terrafuser that landed here in Tech Square?"_

"I checked yours on the way to Townsville as XLR8. Yours has a lower spawning rate, so you don't need to worry about it too much. But try to build something that can keep it very low!" Ben said.

"Alright then!" Blossom commanded. "We divide and conquer for as long as these things come after us, and you, me, and Bubbles will rendezvous at Mojo's volcano!"

"We got it! Move out!" Five shouted. The Powerpuffs went in separate ways, staying close to the ground to not lose the attention of the spawns. Their plan began taking its course, attracting the spawns and keeping them separate Blossom made her way to the trees, hoping to lose some of them in the branches and leaves where she could eviscerate them with her heat vision. Bubbles went lower and was chased in an open field, moving close enough to the perimeter fence of the park for Providence to help out with their own rounds. Buttercup was having lots of fun scorching the lot of them from a place where they couldn't reach her, but her heat vision wasn't enough anymore. A dead giveaway of her own exhaustion.

Ben stayed with the KND, morphing into Upchuck and swallowing anything he could find to toss back at the Fusions. But due to his short stature, he couldn't tell if all his firings were hits or misses. Trying to catch a glimpse from the side of the Petrosapien stalagmite, all he could see was that same Terrafuser again.

Suddenly, a Fusion came in the way of that, and immediately spat at him, knocking him off his feet. He pressed his badge and fell back down as Ben Tennyson.

Looking down, Five noticed that Ben was caught off guard and had stumbled back. He looked hurt. "Y'alright?" She asked.

Ben could only mumble half words, apparently apprehensive to talk to her. "I–I...I'm fine. It...it's good to see you." Ben said nervously, not wanting to say much about her fate in the dystopian future. Her death still hung over his shoulders, and it was something he wasn't proud of at all, forcing her to sacrifice herself and all.

Five took a good long look at him, squinting in confusion, before her KND spy-training kicked in and put the pieces together for her.

"...oh...come _on_..."

"W-What?"

"N-Numbuh Five's gonna die, right?!"

"What?!" Ben exclaimed. How could she have figured it out?! He didn't even say anything! "I didn't even say anything!"

"Ah shut up!" Five said, quickly getting over the dread of death fast. "If these nasty slimers're gonna be the death of me, then Numbuh Five ain't passin' on without passin' a few more headshots!"

"You got over that surprisingly fast."

Five chuckled a bit, welcoming the alien hero's humor. "Welcome back to happier times!" Five retorted.

"Heh...happier times..."

"MOVING ON!" Buttercup exclaimed as she flew by, being chased by her own army of spawns, snapping Ben out of his euphoria and bringing him back to the battlefield. Readying the Omnitrix for another alien, he began rotating through his collection of holograms as the watch showed them, combing through the massive archives of Galvan indexes to find an alien he could wish for.

* * *

**SECTOR V TREEHOUSE - EAST WING HANGAR**

The hangar was in chaos. It looked like something out of a disaster movie, with people panicking, running in circles, looting random junk wherever they could find it. And as the four leading members of Sector V charged in with guns a-blazing, expecting to find a bountiful of beasts attacking the operatives...they found all the operatives attacking each other, unsure of what to do. Some of them were on their knees wailing, holding only two chocolate bars, as though there weren't enough rations for them if they had to abandon the treehouse.

They hoped to Number Zero that last part wasn't true.

Looking around and calmly setting down their guns, the apparent saviors set their weapons (and weapon systems, for Bradley) down. Shaking off whatever bloodlust they had saved for Fusion monsters, the three of them (and Four in tow) set themselves down near the crowd of bubbling anxiety.

"They're in a way more dire situation than we thought." Number One noted, stating the absolutely obvious.

"Well, the apocalypse just began. I don't blame 'em." Three said, pushing a large C.R.A.T.E. to the center of the pandemonium, being mostly ignored by the operatives running around like headless chickens. To catch the headless chickens' collective attention, she had to shout and stand on the C.R.A.T.E.

"Everybody! Please, just try to remain calm!" Three stood up, attempting to take control of the situation. The operatives stopped screaming, though many still made a run for the various vehicles in the KND hangar bay, ignoring the communications officer entirely. A glance back to Number One and Six was a dead giveaway that things were not going okay at all. They were already screaming orders as loud as they could, what more could they do. "We're gonna find out what's happening, and none of us are going to go _insane_ doing it! Maybe it was just a-"

Three's speech was interrupted by an explosion outside the Hangar wall, blasting through the wood and sending splinters of various sizes everywhere. Everyone recoiled, raising their arms to protect their faces, slowly looking up to find the Shocktanglars back at it, having climbed up from the hole that Number Four had made upon his "landing", intercepting the KND agents at their most unprepared. Their red eyes widened, and began raising their tentacles to move towards them...

...and they were holding _soulo shells_.

Wonderful.

"TAKE COVER!" Number One shouted, taking the still-comatose Number Four by the hand and hiding behind another set of C.R.A.T.E.S, narrowly escaping the blasts of the monsters before them. And to make matters worse, the KND operatives of Sector V were scared out of their minds and not thinking with an ounce of their training.

"EVERY KID FOR HIMSELF!" Someone screamed.

"No! NO, WAIT!" Three protested, but it was too late; her pleas fell on deaf ears as the hangar began quickly descending into complete anarchy as Shocktanglars began chasing various groups of kids, even singling out some with a grab of their tentacles, throwing them off the edge of the hangar floor and down into the larger tree branches. Some weren't so lucky...and screamed all the way down.

Don't worry, they survived. Geez. Just a couple broken...everything.

But the operatives above didn't know that, fearing the worst for their friends and comrades. But now was no time to wallow, and the KND started firing their weapons (and weapons systems) as much as they could to hold off the Fusion monsters. Their shots made it through the mutated and warped bodies the fusions inhabited, but they couldn't pass through the fusion matter within. Their rounds and ammo bounced off the hordes, but did manage to subdue them long enough to slow their approach.

It didn't matter though. The Fusions were a relentless species, intent on absorbing and assimilating everything that came its way; a wild band of human infants would not deter them from fulfilling their Fused will and purpose. They were to consume everything, as it was written.

And the KND, oblivious to their motivations and intentions, were slowly but surely being backed into a corner. What were they to do?! None of their weapons were even working! They couldn't fight back!

Three and Six closed their eyes in a moment of lost faith. None of their rounds did anything, what more could they do? They couldn't be asked anymore, and they tried their best...

Suddenly, the most sudden surprise occurred. A major section in their legion had suddenly collapsed, sinking into the oak and dripping out the bottom of the hangar. One by one, the Shocktanglars fell, each of them frantically searching for who pulled this attack. It had all happened so fast, and all people could make of the phenomenon was the sound they heard: a prominent gust of wind blowing at incredible speeds. But that wasn't possible! It wasn't even windy!

It started making more sense when the blur crashed into the wall of the connecting corridor.

And out came a kid in a half-sleeved thin denim shirt, sporting a radiation hazard warning printed on his t-shirt, and the wildest set of flaming red highlights seen on this side of the suburbs. And Canada.

"Who're you?!" Number One asked demandingly.

"Er...name's Johnny. The angry scientist on the phone sent me." Johnny responded, as he maneuvered past the broken splintered wood and the hole in the wall that he created. "Did I get 'em all?"

Looking behind himself, he saw the legion of Shocktanglars all down, oozing fusion matter onto the wooden floor and staying down, including the ones that chased stray KND operatives. He looked upon his work with a grin; maybe he was getting the hang of this speed stuff after all. He just had to focus on not running into walls.

Johnny felt, however, that he was forgetting something important. Like there was something these fusions were supposed to do once they were dead.

Eh, who cares, he thought. He was too busy basking in this super awesome victory! The KND had a few more questions for him though.

" _HOW_ did you get them all?!" One demanded to know.

"I dunno. Think I vibrated my molecules when I ran into them and destabilized their forms or something." Johnny 'speculated'. "Powerful stuff like that usually does the trick." He said, referencing when he saw Dexter jam an electric wrench into a Techwing. But behind the hyperactive hooligan, it was clear that his pride and victory was wasted as the fusion matter began wriggling and climbing back up into the bodies of several less-injured and sustainable Shocktanglars, regenerating at an impressive rate. He seemed oblivious to the whole thing, not even able to hear the soft but audible scowling noise the rejuvenated Fusion monsters were making. If only someone would tell him!

"It doesn't do the trick for long!" Three screamed, taking notice and pointing with her shaking hand. Johnny looked bewildered at such a preposterous idea. He clearly beat them! He ran into a wall just to take them out! Ugh, he thought. His victory was RUINED!

Never mind that, though. He had to make sure to finish the job. This time for good. But with what? He couldn't exactly risk running off the floor and falling into the open. Even if he could pull something out of his mutant genes to save him, he couldn't afford to keep everyone waiting for his return. They could be dead by then.

At that point, he realized that he was thinking too much about his speed. He had a legion of powers at his beck-and-call, all thanks to those countless experiments over the last 5 years beating his DNA into tin foil. It was time he used them.

"Okay, hold on. I got something better for this!" Johnny said, standing ready and with a mischievous gin. That Dexter guy did tell him to use his other powers in light of his inexperience with super-speed. Perhaps he should have lead with that instead, and that way he could finish the job. His hands began vibrating, shaking at incredible speeds, generating static and moisture in a blizzard of weather. All in the palm of his hands. Straightening out his hands, he channeled all those mini storms into a swirling vortex of its own, remembering to step back as the Fusions approached him closer and closer.

These creatures were lessening the pace because they recognized who, or rather _what_ , they were fighting. An extremely powerful metahuman, and with any move they had to be prepared.

But nothing could have prepared them for what he did next, which was jump forward and smack them with all the elemental energy he had, and it was _still_ swirling and charging. He finally let both mini-storms loose with a fast motion after jumping back, raising both hands and sending the tornados spinning into the monsters ahead. Johnny's attempt at martial arts seemed to be enough to distract them and let their guard down. Now it was the monsters flying and crashing out the wall, plummeting to a pulpy death from the Treehouse. But the sheer force of the mini tornado, which Johnny was struggling to rein in and control, was tearing the Shocktanglar bodies apart, depriving the Fusion matter of the oxygen they had adapted to when coming to Earth, weakening them immensely. Gusts of wind blew into the KND's faces, prompting some to look away from the blow-back, but most of them could look only in awe at the kid with the flaming hair protected them.

The last Shocktanglar was still spinning round and round, trying desperately to maintain this physical form. It drew on the strength that its lord and master provided it, and Johnny was not having it. He tried to increase the intensity of the winds, growing red from exhaustion, and having to set down one of his tornado arms. He had to increase the power somehow, but not with winds.

His mind pondered on using a flame-based attack. But would that work? The lack of oxygen in the tornado would definitely make it hard to sustain a proper fire whirl. But if he made it as hot as he could...perhaps the wind conditions would be enough to sustain the flames!

And Dukey said he never listened to his sisters' science lectures.

"I have an idea," he told the members of Sector V, "and I hope it works!"

"What idea?!"

"God I hope it works, 'cause I really don't wanna make the flames come from my-"

"AASSS YOU WERE DOING!" Three shouted, well aware of what Johnny was about to say, but she was undeterred and still ready to fire her weapon at the Fusion monsters; ready to strike if Johnny Test's 'brilliant plan' over here would fail them.

"As a wise...uh...fictional character...once said..." Johnny said, stalling for time while his tired arm transferred as much thermal energy as he could store (as well as that stored in his...unspeakable), he glanced back to the Shocktanglar, having adapted to the conditions of the tornado, though not in a position to fight back. His hand glided over to his front, and with as much grit as he could muster, he said, "FLAME ON, SUCKER!"

Firing everything he had, his flames shot out his right hand and were quickly absorbed by the tornado, spiraling and spinning and checkmating the Fusion monster. The Shocktanglar was beginning to react violently to the extra layer of burning atmosphere. Its casing was melting, the wires burning and growing limp, and the blank red eyes of evil were wide open with pain. It screamed and squealed, shrieking and roaring, unable to escape the trap set by the metahuman boy.

But the boy was getting tired. Any longer and the fire whirl could spiral out of control. He should have thought this through more. "I have to let go at some point!" Johnny thought out loud, unsure of when he could do, "but without slowing down, the entire place could be set on fire!"

"NO! **DON'T** DO THAT!" Bradley shouted, while One and Three looked on with fear. "DO **ANYTHIN'** BUT THAT!"

Johnny continued gritting his teeth, though not before sheepishly laughing a little; he hadn't intended to say that out loud. But the situation was getting even MORE dire. His choices were between a rock and a hard place. And what was worse was that his arms were tiring, and his head was feeling faint. He couldn't keep up this display forever.

But out of nowhere, he was proven that he didn't have to. He could hear a missile launch from behind him completely unexpectedly. Moving at enough force to cut through the tornado and hit the last Shocktanglar square in the tentacles, sending it spinning through the room and out the tornado in a miserable and burnt state before finally rising out of the hangar and exploding at a safe distance. A yellow beam of light descended upon the base as the Shocktanglar was decimated after being beaten, spun around endlessly, and utterly humiliated at the hands of these humans.

Turning around, they found that the one who fired was none other than Number Four, half-emerged from his concussive coma, gritting his teeth from the splitting headache he had and the enormous amount of effort he had to pull just for this one thing.

"'ow many is at urth..." Four said, still slurring and suffering from his concussion, and quickly falling back into unconsciousness.

Johnny looked at the Australian kid with blond hair bangs with a darkly humorous grin, before feeling light headed himself. Using his hands, he dispersed the tornado of fire and wind, both elements disappearing with nothing more than gusts and embers. By the end, the human guinea pig was more than exhausted. He was a mess; panting, sweating, a little limp in his legs. With how much force he had to exert, he wouldn't have been surprised if his sweat was turning into C4.

But the job wasn't done yet.

Eh, who cared about the job. All Johnny wanted to do was relax a little. There were only so many times he could be bothered to do anything, and most of the time, he deserved a nice rest afterwards.

* * *

Until these fusions could be properly subdued, they forced themselves to keep fighting. They couldn't back down now, not when they still had to get Mojo's Volcano. But there had to be an endgame to this whole thing. They couldn't play Tom and Jerry forever; at least when they did it back in the 1940s, it sounded fun from the history books alone. But this was getting pedantic. Tiring.

Blossom and Bubbles had switched tactics; the former was now racing across the fence of Townsville Park, letting the Providence agents shoot the chasing spawns behind her, looking back to strike some of them herself using her heat vision. Bubbles went for higher territory, colliding into the trees and keeping a lot of the spawns chasing her stuck in one place. Buttercup kept company with Ben and the KND, working outside the Petrosapien barricade to punch, kick and tear apart any and all spawns that came her way. Ben provided as much sniping as he could as Water Hazard, as did Number Five and Number Two, making sure to put at least five rounds of smoothies or freeze rays on the each cluster of spawns.

But even they knew they couldn't keep doing this. Ben was well aware that they had a mission, and a purpose to keep fighting in this instant, but until these Fusions were properly subdued, he wouldn't be going anywhere. But unless they had some sort of sweet diversion...

...oh wait. In the heat of battle, Ben had almost completely forgotten. But in a moment of serenity, he remembered what Buttercup had said before he left the lab. And suddenly, a plan began forming. And just as he was figuring things out, he got an incoming call from Dexter. It looked like he wasn't stoked about their position as sitting ducks either.

 _"Ben, we are wasting precious time,"_ Dexter spoke into Ben's commlink, built into the Omnitrix badge each of his aliens sported when he transformed. _"You need to go to the volcano and reconfigure that telescope!"_

Ben knew he was right. They had stalled long enough, and Ben had simply making sure that the Powerpuffs and the KND would have some backup. Now was the time to drop the act. He pressed his badge, contacting the others. "Blossom, Bubbles, lead your spawns back here. We've got a transducer to use!"

 _"Roger_ _that!"_ Blossom confirmed. _"_ _Headed your way now!"_

"Okay...Buttercup! Get ready!" Ben told her with ferocity. This was the moment she was waiting for. To let it all out.

"Way ahead of you!" Buttercup rebutted, quickly hovering up and channeling as much as she could into her heat vision, sending green rays of light across the battlefield. Not all spawns were impacted by it though; some maneuvered past it, but Buttercup was able to multitask, and started punching as many as she could, despite being somewhat blind to where they were. Firing her knuckles at top speed, she pummeled and hit as hard as she could, attacking from all angles that she could find.

While Buttercup and the KND distracted, Ben transfigured into XLR8, running as fast as he could through the various pastel streets and buildings of Townsville to escape the fight. Blossom and Bubbles took a different direction, being far more familiar with their city than Ben was. The volcano was just a few blocks away from the park, and with the right speed for all three heroes, they could make it in time to begin work. It was just a matter of how much work there would be to do.

On the ground, things were going smoothly. Buttercup was continuing her barrage against the Fusions, shaking off all attempts at overwhelming her, but not letting a single spawn escape her sight. As much as she was sure Providence's perimeter was tight, she couldn't be sure that they would be able to handle this horde.

Number Two, realizing that the situation finally called for it, activated his F.L.A.P.P.U.H to give more air support in the absence of the other two girls. But not before getting to say something he'd been waiting to say for a while.

"Kids Next Door! BATTLE STATIONS!" He proudly shouted, despite there being only two operatives on the field.

"We already shouted that." Five said, ruining the moment.

"Yeah, but _I_ didn't do it!"

"Just keep it down, Hoagie," Five warned. "If one of these Providence adults hears that name, the entire KND gets toasted!"

"Right, right, sorry!" Two apologized as he began floating upwards, his gun still in-hand.

"WILL YOU TWO BOZOS PLEASE GET BACK TO SHOOTING?!" Buttercup exclaimed. It was rather frustrating to her how often these Kids Next Door people could get distracted.

* * *

They were under such a hurry to enter the conservatory, Ben didn't even bother transforming into Upgrade to hack the security system. This time, he kicked the door down and into a chemistry lab with the might of Four Arms (but still with two legs, though) and all the anxiety of his human self. The Powerpuff Girls that trailed behind him bolted into the lab with their pink and blue trails of light following them even as they descended.

They began combing the area for large devices, which frankly wasn't very hard. But between the gaps in the metal floor revealing giant robots, flying saucers, charging stations, and dozens of monitors and spectrometers, it was a little difficult to find the best parts to take from to modify the telescope. But strangely enough, the girls _weren't_ doing that. They were leaving everything they examined intact.

"What're you guys doing?"

"Finding the right device. In case you didn't notice, there are a lot of them in this one giant room." Blossom told him, finally stopping in her super-speedy tracks in front of one device in particular. "Okay Bubbles, I found it!"

"Fine, but why?" the alien hero inquired. "Shouldn't we be breaking this stuff apart and redesigning the telescope to make that imaginary ray?"

"Gosh, wrecking all his stuff sounds so fun;" Blossom said in a non-joking manner, "but honestly, we don't need to. Let me just check to see if the telescope can still charge an electromagnetic frequency."

Seeing the confusion on the Tetramand's face, Bubbles explained what they knew. "Mojo's used the telescope as a laser pointer before, specifically to project concussive blasts. He used one on Townsville three years ago. We beat him up for it, and then we climbed into the Dynamo to destroy the death ray...and then we beat him up again. It was a fun day."

"Okay! It's still got that!" Blossom confirmed regarding the telescope. "We can make a makeshift EPC!"

"Really?" Ben asked in disbelief. "So why did Dexter assume we'd have to build it? Did he think Mojo destroyed that part of the telescope?"

"Honestly, I don't even wanna ask why Dexter would expect _so_ _much_ of our archenemy." Blossom answered. "But regardless, the telescope could use a few modifications for the spectrometers to process the right concentration of imagination energy. And to do that..."

"We got ourselves a bona-fide imaginary energy transducer!" Ben shouted in victory as he transformed back into a human, running over to hand the device to Blossom's careful hands. "Seriously though. Why does Mojo still have this telescope if he used it for a death ray once?"

Blossom rolled her eyes, not at the genuine question, but the memory of that incident's fallout. "Let's just say our Mayor is really easy to bribe. Like...REALLY easy." she lamented as she took the device from Ben with her careful hands. She remembered the last time she had to carry it and modify it and fire it on a horde of fusion spawns not too dissimilar to the one outside.

But a glance to that same park, now a battlefield, she did feel a slight amount of worry that distracted her. "Are you sure they're gonna survive out there?" She asked, worried about her sister and the KND's lives.

"Let's just say I worked a lot with Future Number Two to know that the guy can make anything work." Ben said, quick to assure her otherwise. "And he'll definitely be able think up something that'll work."

* * *

"Holy crap, it worked!" Two exclaimed.

His plan was simple and straightforward. Using his F.L.A.P.P.U.H, he would attain the high ground higher than any of the girls could achieve, and fire on higher frequencies of blended fruits and veggies to overwhelm the fusion spawns.

But like always, the fusion spawns adapt. They begin hopping around each other, building up a speed until they bump heads and begin working to form a pillar out of nothing but their own bodies. They looked like a giant earthworm now.

"Holy crap, it didn't work!" Two exclaimed.

* * *

"I knew that wouldn't work." Ben admitted, looking out Mojo's window.

"What?!"

"They adapt, Blossom. That giant Fusion earthworm was bound to happen at some point" Ben told her, confronting her utter disbelief with a strategy of his own. "But the best part about this? We have a clear line of sight of a test subject for the imagination ray."

"If we wanted a test subject, we would've brought along that Johnny kid!" Blossom told him. "I don't feel very comfortable gambling lives here."

"Number Two apparently invented that piece of KND tech he's wearing." Ben told her, not losing faith in the operative for one second. "If he really invented it, then flying will be second-hand for him. He might even be as fast as you. So if I'm telling you he can handle the spawns on that thing, he can do it."

Just then, a transmission over the comm channel came through. It was all for the worse; while Ben had confidence in Number Two's persistence...it seemed like Buttercup was on her last legs. _"Guys?"_ Buttercup said over the comm channel, sounding incredibly tired and weak.

"Buttercup?!" Bubbles shouted, still worried for her sister's safety. And at that moment, the time was nearing the darkest hour.

_"Guys...I don't know how much more I can do this...please hurry up!"_

"Buttercup's diversion isn't working anymore?!" Ben asked, hearing her distress call too.

"Hang in there!" Blossom said, clearly stressing and freaking out over what could become of her sister if they didn't act now. But the problem was... "We...we don't have time to help her! What're we going to do?!"

Immediately, Ben had a backup plan in mind. He remembered seeing some of the news reports following the girls on their adventures, and recalled that Bubbles in particular had a pretty special move she used on special occasions. It intrigued him to see what Bubbles could do to with help from a certain alien he had in the watch. "Bubbles! You got something loud and noisy to keep them preoccupied?!"

"Gotch'ya covered, boss!" Bubbles complied with a great deal of excitement. She had been waiting to use _her_ special move for the longest while.

"Good. I can help you."

"How? You and Blossom need to work on the telescope!"

"I said _I_ could help you." Ben said as he pushed the Omnitrix hourglass on his chest yet again. Ben's entire body shrank down in height. His facial proportions shifted and compressed, becoming more obtuse than long, and his entire body was wrapped in a white jumpsuit-like material. Headphone-like bumps connected to veins formed around his stretched-out head, and his eyes and hourglass badge glowed a bright neon green. Wasting no time, Ben used Echo Echo to make two copies of himself, and their shared mental link gave them an idea of what came next. "I never said which one of me, though! Take my two clones and get _really_ noisy!" He asked, throwing the clones to the flying blue Powerpuff.

"Hooray! A roller coaster ride!" one clone said positively.

"I'm gonna be sick!" the other clone said more negatively.

Bubbles giggled as she carried the clones on her two arms, both Bens holding on for dear life, but as they bolted up in the sky and set their sights toward the battle at the Park, seeing their friends in constant battle and peril, all fear faded away almost in an instant.

"CANNON. OF. SOUND!" The Echos said in unison, and Bubbles cleared her throat to let their collective voices rip.

And rip they did and more. The sound was at a high enough frequency to completely destabilize the spawns in the park. From afar even, the KND's ears were ringing like crazy. But it did the best number on the spawns, and even unbalanced the large Fusion earthworm. Bubbles and Ben knew that this move would help far more for the time being, and wouldn't need to be repeated for a while. But they knew the more times they did it, the more the fusions would be able to adapt to it. But at least at that point they could give Buttercup a bit of resting time as the hordes of fusion spawns retreated.

* * *

"You want me to WHAT?!"

"You have super-speed, don't you?" Number One asked aggravatingly, "You can extract the KND operatives in Townsville!"

"Haven't you been paying attention? Or maybe I should crash more holes in your wall? Hell, why not I just break your entire tree apart, dude?!" Johnny protested, annoyed that this KND agent couldn't see his point. He didn't always think THAT high of himself, with his apparent narcissism being mostly a front, but he knew when he was in the right. "If anyone's best equipped to extract them, it's you guys!"

"You mean to tell me you have no other powers, and no other inventions, that can help our friends?!" One shouted back. "Townsville Park was just locked off by Providence. We came back to escape complete public exposure! If you go, it'll be in and out, and everything we at the KND have worked for will be in vain!"

"Last I checked, I saw your KND thing go public hours ago!" Johnny pulled out his own NanoCom and pointed to the unmarked and public communications server, the one that Number Two opened to reconnect the KND. "Plus, we have no clue if those tentacle things are gonna return! And you want the superhero _away_ from the action? You want me to leave you powerless kids to die?! Look, you care so much about your friends, then you gotta make your call. And it doesn't matter if it's the right one if that's how much you care about them! KND protocol my-"

"THERE ARE KIDS IN THIS ROOM!"

"Whatever! Look at all the cards on the table, and figure out what you wanna do! But all I'll say is that I'm gonna make sure nothing so much as _scratches_ your treehouse. Got it?!"

His rant was short and precise, but most importantly it was straight to the point. It made Number One realize and accept defeat. He wasn't thinking properly or rationally. His worry for their safety was clouding his judgement. At this point, they had no choice.

With a deep and regretful sigh...

One made his call.

"Three? Four? Prime the S.C.A.M.P.E.R." He told them, walking backwards and hopping into one of the many available ships. "We're taking off."

Both operatives looked indifferent to this decision, more so surprised by Number One's concession to this unruly metahuman of all people. But what they had expected to hear was what One asked Johnny soon after. They just didn't expect it so late.

"That includes _you_." One ordered Johnny, ignoring his wishes to stay at the treehouse, much to his shock. "Your powers might yet be of use to us, but I can assure you the last thing my Sector needs is your protection. All they need is a better _push_." He explained, and soon after turned to the other members of Sector V. "Kids Next Door! BATTLE STATIONS! Man the fort, make sure nothing touches our base. You now have full authorization to use deadly force, including and not limited to our stash of anti-toxins! Now MOVE OUT!"

All the kids were reenergized, as if a fire had been lit in their hearts as well as right underneath them. They had been observing the argument for a while, hoping someone would at least inspire them. But they couldn't deny each side had a point. It was just a matter of making a call, be it right or wrong, because they were running out of time.

* * *

"Remember, the red wire goes over the blue wire! And remember to push the button on the stick to fire it!" Blossom shouted at the now human Ben, urgent to get this right. Surprisingly, Ben made no attempt to talk back, fully understanding the gravity of the situation; this was no time for even levity.

He made sure to contact command for a favor. "Dex! Keep the area readings up! We need to know if we properly killed the spawns this time!"

 _"Affirmative_ _!"_

Blossom quickly hovered over to the towering light-matter generator that would power the telescope's death ray, using the transducer to provide a less deadly fuel source would ensure a proper ray of energy released, deadly only for the fusion spawns that continued chasing Number Two, whose plan had adapted. She looked outside the window to see him circling the long worm like a crow to its prey, almost winding the worm into the soil and trapping it, as it moved with such a force that it shifted the earth beneath itself.

But a little bit longer for this generator and Two wouldn't have to worry about that worm any longer.

"Just a little bit more..." Blossom said, bouncing on her tiptoes as the meter filled up with imagination energy. Reaching 95%...then 97...soon 98...and finally...

...it reached 100%!

"BEN! _**NOW!**_ "

And without hesitation, this makeshift Electro-Pulse Cannon was activated by Ben, the telescope lens moved into position by Bubbles...

...and blasted its way into Townsville Park.

Like a ray of light, it immediately touched down on the Fusion worm, pummeling it with an energy hazardous to it and only it, penetrating each part of the polymer chain that made up the fusion matter, penetrating and cancelling it out with pure imagination energy. Very soon, the spawns began collapsing as Number Two looked in awe. They were slowly and surely being disintegrated into nothing.

"BUBBLES! AIM IT AT THE TERRAFUSER!" Blossom commanded, not wasting another second.

And neither did Bubbles as the ray of light and electromagnetism began pummeling the Terrafuser with everything it had. From afar, Bubbles couldn't see much, but a peak from Five confirmed their hopes. The Terrafuser was disintegrating, collapsing in on itself!

The beam began to shrink and shrink, until it receded back into the telescope. Everyone was panting from the insane amount of stress and pressure that had just befallen them for the last half-n-hour. The telescope was still a little warm from the beam, staying ready for another blast, which the three of them were wondering if they would need. But they knew there was only one true way to find out.

"Dex?"

A long pause took place, and the silence was killing them. The boy genius himself was taking a while to answer their question, and for a while it almost felt like he was toying with them. But the silence could also have meant he himself was processing what had just happened, or trying his best to hold in his excitement.

 _"Congratulations...you did it."_ the boy genius informed them.

Luckily for our heroes, it was the latter.

Their eyes widened without fear for the first time in what felt like forever. A nice change of pace to have a good surprise indeed, and naturally our heroes were quick to celebrate.

" **HOLY CRAP!** " Ben exclaimed with absolute joy. He doubted this ever happened in the Future's past.

 _" **YES! HELL! YES!"**_ Buttercup yelled over the channel.

Blossom herself was so relieved that she didn't bother to correct Buttercup's language. "We did it...we really did it." She repeated. "We did it! WE DID IT!"

But that victory was short lived, as Bubbles noticed something horrifying above.

_"Uh...guys?"_

"What?"

 _"Look up in the sky."_ Bubbles said, prompting everyone to do just that. For the girls, they used their telescopic vision. For Ben, he couldn't see past the large metal dome, so he had to use the telescope itself. He was hoping for a minor setback, like maybe the imagination energy caused the grass and trees to come to life and start singing show-tunes. But what they saw killed their excitement and that minor hope from not too long ago.

There were five large, bright green balls, about the size of satellites, falling from the sky, barely visible from down on Earth, and had yet to enter the atmosphere. They were like green twinkling stars...twinkling stars that were getting brighter. They were making their descent much quicker than any normal meteor, catching the attention of our heroes, as well as the Providence agents surrounding the Park.

Ben looked up at that sky with the momentary relief sucked out of him as though a vampire bit him. He contacted command to be the bearer of the really bad news. "Dexter. You...spoke WAY too soon..."

 _"That's a lot of green eggs..."_ Bubbles said. _"And there's no ham with it..."_ she said half-joking and half-terrified.

 _"But...it...that is not possible!"_ Dexter continued exclaiming, understanding the inference from Bubbles. _"My planetary satellites are not picking up any signals!"_

Just like always, Ben realized. Fuse was adapting to their strategies, their techniques.

But he can't have adapted to imagination energy yet.

"Blossom, how much charge does the machine have?!"

"It should be enough for a nullification, but not enough to slow their velocity down." Blossom elaborated. "We can try."

"We have no choice. Let's fire it again!" Ben said, grabbing the button stick. "Bubbles, get it into position!"

 _"They're coming from space! How'll I know where to point it from here?!"_ Bubbles exclaimed, unsure that the scope's ray would even reach the pack of eggs in their descent. She wasn't the best at trig either, so her confidence was wearing thin.

But Ben had a quick and easy solution. "Follow the sound. They should be entering the atmosphere now!"

And almost as if on cue, the Terrafusers finally made atmospheric entry, lighting up the sky with a fiery color of green and orange, still glowing and ready to strike. But thee heroes would die before letting that happen.

"READY?!"

_"Ready!"_

Without even saying 'aim' or 'fire', Ben pushed the button stick once more, igniting the chain reaction again and using up the last reserves of imagination energy left in the transducer. Sparks began flying from the generator, overheating the transducer in the process, but managing to send as much imagination energy into the stratosphere and higher. The blowback on the generator must've been from the amount of energy being converted at such a large distance.

Bubbles once again tried her best to see their hit was a success, and to no surprise it was. The blast engulfed all five new Terrafusers!

 _"Success. The ionized radiation signals has grown increasingly weak."_ Dexter spoke, informing everyone. _"But that blast was not powerful enough to stop its descent!"_

Blossom was more than disappointed by the revelation, no matter how she predicted it not too long ago. "Just like I said. They're not stopping!"

Ben had it up to here with this crap. He let out a cry of frustration. "Aaargh! Damnit!"

"Language!"

"Oh go language yourself!"

 _"Knock it off, both of you!"_ Bubbles protested from outside. Getting the both of them to shut up, she reached for her earpiece to contact the ground team. _"Buttercup! You there?!"_

 _"W-What's wrong?!"_ Buttercup asked, still a little sore from all that fighting, and caught off guard by the sudden change in mood.

_"We got more meteors incoming! WAY MORE incoming! The telescope nullified them, but you can catch them, right?"_

Buttercup smiled as she heard those words. It was a rarity to see Bubbles being so strategic, let alone willing to let her sister do her heroic thing. The previous time, the Terrafuser was active, and that's why Bubbles had pushed her out of the way. With the Terrafusers incoming now inactive, Bubbles was now giving her the chance to do her heroic thing.

And she _loved_ catching meteors.

"Just point me in the right direction, sis!" she exclaimed. "And no funny business this time; got it?" she demanded. She took the following silence as a 'yes', and flew off into the direction her NanoCom was now telling her to go to. It looked like this wave of Terrafusers was going to land in the Pokey Oaks suburbs...where the girls themselves lived.

For Buttercup, the stakes couldn't have been higher. The ray they used only temporarily nullified the Terrafusers as engines of planetary destruction, but at that point they were nothing more than meteors, meteors crashing down at a high impact velocity. Buttercup's mind raced as she raced to her home suburb. What if their house is hit?! What if the Professor gets hurt?! She had to call it in!

"Dexter! Call my dad, tell him to get to the basement! NOW!"

_"I will, just a moment! Jack, report back indoors!"_

As the meteors cut through the clouds, they left a green moody sky in their wake, and on a peaceful day in the Pokey Oaks neighborhood, that was immediately noticeable by pretty much everyone. People on their NanoComs began to notice how the sky got significantly darker, and how a tint of green were appearing before their very eyes...in fact, it was before them because it was coming right for them!

Buttercup continued racing across her familiar neighborhood at her top speed, finding these people as they began to shriek and cry in terror, and pulling them out of the way, one by one. It was all in a blur, and saving so many people almost made her forget about the issue with these meteors. She mentally face-palming under the realization that the Terrafusers could still land and regenerate afterwards.

"So that was Bubbles' dilemma." Buttercup felt guilty in her ignorance while racing to the next location; right now, caring about family was her top priority anyhow. She kept looking up and down, scanning for her house and making sure she didn't lose sight of the remaining meteors.

Out of the corner of her eye, she finally saw her home as she flew by.

Thank god, she thought. She was so worried, and now she didn't have to hold anything back in flying.

But she did need to still strategize. She saw that the remaining two Terrafusers were going in separate directions. She didn't have a way to keep both from landing without neglecting the other. So, in a quick-willed thought, she fired her heat vision at a remarkable concussive pressure on the Terrafuser the farthest away from her, hoping to change its course; she was counting that it would land in a grass field with a considerable distance away from the suburban houses.

And with that, she increased her speed in the air, and absorbed the hit of the inactive Terrafuser colliding into her.

This time, she could properly fight back, firing both lasers and using all her strength to push back on the Terrafuser's destination. Looking behind her, it was in the middle of a street, and people were a little too distracted to notice her coming in hot.

"COMING THROUGH!" She yelled, successfully getting their attention. They all began screaming and getting out of the way, running away as Buttercup landed; her feet crashed into the asphalt road and a little into the sidewalk behind her as the Terrafuser kept pushing and pushing.

Gritting her teeth, grunting and yelling in exertion with all her might, her powers entered a phase unlike anything she felt. The rush of adrenaline was enough to increase her strength tenfold. **She would** **NOT let this thing land!** That surge and extra ounce of motivation was _exactly_ what she needed to pull through...or in this case...

...push through.

At last, Buttercup's grip and push on the Terrafuser was coming in her favor. And in an indescribable amount of joy, she chucked the deflated egg all the way into space with every last bit of strength, and it rocketed back into the atmosphere, becoming merely a twinkle in the eye.

She found that entire experience to be incredibly stressful...and as the bystanders surrounded her, she felt a desperate need to go back home. The bystanders surrounding her, however, were a little concerned about her. A burly man in black and blue with shades hanging over his eyes took a different approach than the rest, though.

"Whoah, mama," the cool-looking dude said as 'politely' as he could "for a girl you got some-!"

"Don't...don't even say it." the tough Powerpuff warned, falling back down onto the curved but cracked asphalt. Finally taking a breather. It was over. It was finally over...for now.

* * *

She couldn't believe the battle that had just finished. They were cornered so many times, outnumbered and outmatched, and faced with doom more times today than ever before. It was unlike anything they faced from Father's forces, or the Proper Patrol's, or the B.R.A. forces, or anyone for that matter. Abby had been a KND operative since she was 4 years old, ever since her sister enlisted her, and with 11 years of service to children everywhere being suddenly undermined by the most haunting and terrifying battle of her career, nearly being slaughtered by a hostile alien army, she was very very frightened. But most of all...

...she was tired. She was slouched against the Petrosapien barricade, too petrified to move a muscle, and too tense to ease and relax. Trauma wouldn't be an apt word to describe what she experienced, nor would exhaustion. But the word she was looking for to define the aftermath of her fight certainly fell in-between.

Even Number Two, who could eat five family-sized pot pies over the course of an entire day and not lose an ounce of energy, was resting on the straps of his F.L.A.P.P.U.H. trying to catch a breath. He limped over in fatigue to slouch next to Five, fearing what would happen next.

All three Powerpuff Girls were out of the way, Ben 10 had saved the day yet again, Dexter and his team were safe in their laboratory, but the KND were completely surrounded and given no afterthought. Providence agents surrounded them. And even though the Terrafuser was temporarily nullified, they feared they would be stuck inside the containment zone if they were stuck exhausted any longer...or worse that the Terrafuser would regenerate quickly and continue the battle. There just was no conceivable way out of this situation. It really felt like they had been screwed over. Even though they knew this would be their riskiest job yet, and that Providence would find out eventually. But they hoped it wouldn't be so soon...and in such a dire state.

Forget the alien invasion or whatever; the world already felt like it was ending.

In fact, Number Five couldn't tell if she had died like Ben said she would yet. The only thing that was keeping her from slipping into exhaustion were the inexplicable gusts of wind that were blowing against her face. But maybe she really was in heaven...because she kept hearing someone call out her codename.

"Numbuh Five!" a voice called out, a familiar voice at that. "Numbuh Five! Abby, it's us!"

Tilting her head just the tiniest bit above, not high enough to expose her eyes, she finally got a good look at who was calling. It was Number One, and Number Three and Four, all on a S.C.A.M.P.E.R, here to extract them.

"Numbuh One..."

"Hey Nigel." Number Two called out in a quiet voice, fatigued as hell from the battle and its climatic finish. The most uncomfortable thing about it all was the knowledge that it was far from over. But at least there could be peace for a moment.

The two of them were so tired that they couldn't even jump to think that the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. was completely out in the open. Luckily for them, behind them was a massive tornado, circling their entire position in a thick foggy wind that could barely be seen by the outside Providence forces. The agents watched from afar, unsure of what it even was. They could only make out a silhouette behind the stationary tornado. They knew it was a spaceship, and that the shape looked an awful lot like the crashed one from the mission briefing, but they hadn't ever seen a functioning one at all. All they could wonder was who was piloting it, and where the tornado had even come from. They had a scanner out, and they couldn't get a straight lock on any metahuman signatures.

The silhouettes behind the tornado took hold of Two and Five while still in-mid air, after the both of them reached high enough to grab their comrades' hands, and the rescuers pulled with all their might until they were safely on-board. Three lead the both of them to a comfy resting area as they began to take off, but not before one last thing.

"Numbuh Four?"

"Eh?"

"Activate the hull magnet, opposing charge."

"Sssssuuuure." Four slurred. A few button clicks at his end of the station and the KND S.C.A.M.P.E.R. activated its built-in hull magnet, useful for carrying things like cargo or repelling anything like ammo. Though with the apparent alien war that could terraform the soil itself, making their entire treehouse more vulnerable than ever, some of the operatives wondered if there were any larger applications for this technology, or if there was anything from the tech-heads in Siyenn City that they could poach off of. They used the magnet they already had to pick up the mostly melted, once-frosty, remains of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. they rode in on when this whole thing had started.

One turned back to face Johnny, who was kneeling down and commanding the currents of wind with his hand. The boy seemed to be sweating and clenching his teeth together. He was clearly getting tired. He turned to face the seated Number Five with his magnetic charm.

"Hey...I'm Johnny," He began. "You wanna help me with somethin'?" He had seen a lot of gadgets come out of the KND's pockets. He was in the hopes that there would be at least one that could give him a boost for power.

"Nnnumbuh Five's...tired as shii..." That was all she could muster to say between panting for dear life.

"Not the reaction I was expecting." Johnny said with his "magnetic" charm, put off by a polarizing reception. "Hey Ray-bands! I think the tornados are starting to unwind!"

"Bradley! We have to go now!" One shouted behind himself. "Hold it for a little longer!"

"I didn't say I could hold on, I said they were unwinding!"

Unwinding they were indeed. The fog and gust began to settle, and the shaped silhouettes of the ship were now being exposed more and more, catching more and more eyes from the perimeter of agents.

"'Kay everyone!" Bradley shouted. "Hold on t'yer lunchbox!" And the KND S.C.A.M.P.E.R. rocketed out of Townsville Park, just in the nick of time and as the storm was fully disperesed. But unfortunately, not enough to stave off the prying eyes of Providence.

As the ship flew off into the greenish clouds, Providence agents were captured in attention, though more so in surprise than in genuine awe. Watching it fly by revealed how low tech the ship seemed despite working just fine. The most interested of them all was Captain Calan, who gave a quick glare and huff before returning to priority one.

"The last heroes are out. Deploy the Dexlabs containment shields." Calan ordered two of his right hand men.

"Sir yes Sir!"

"You got it, chief."

As they were sent out, Calan had other ideas too. "Anderson?" Calan called out. The soldier known as Anderson turned to face his commanding officer, who gave him a new set of orders, "Get a satellite on that thing and find a way to track it. I want to know _everything_."

"Yes sir."

* * *

Ben looked up as Bubbles and his clones descended from the ceiling, having transformed back into Echo Echo to merge himself back with the other two. He was chuckling the whole way through. As he was, Bubbles landed next to her sister, relaying important intel.

"I just got a call from Buttercup." Bubbles told her. "Looks like three of the five terrafusers landed, and the fourth one got bounced off into a different suburb...hopefully."

"And the fifth one?" Blossom asked, knowing the answer already. "She caught it, didn't she? That's good. But how could she lose three others?"

"Apparently they were headed right for civilians. She had to make _some_ kind of call." Bubbles answered. "Honestly, if I were in her position? I'd...probably do the same."

"Fair enough...but guys? We have a different problem." Blossom called to the both of them, the Echoes, now one singular Ben, stood up with worry. What did Blossom mean by that?

"Are there a few more spawns that need to be pulped?" Ben asked, but her answer was far worse than that.

"No...it's the transducer," Blossom sounded shocked and saddened as she held the smoking hot remains of a once incredible piece of technology, its antenna bent out of shape as though it were melting, and all of the glass buttons and indicators had been blown out from the inside. What was worse was that there used to be a glow to it, something that felt strange and raw...and that was lost. It must've been the imagination energy stored within. It was depleted. Blossom held herself accountable; she didn't realize how it would overheat when firing at 100% capacity.

Ben found himself at a loss for words at first. He had imagined the use of that thing could bring a quicker end to the war...but now...he realized that in his entire experience out of time, he didn't hear the transducer mentioned once. And maybe...maybe this was why?

"That's gonna be a problem in the future..." Ben muttered to himself with worry, hoping what he speculated wasn't true. "That could take months to repair and replenish..."

"Surely there's gotta be some stuff left inside to salvage, right?" Bubbles asked.

"There probably is, but not enough for an entire army." Blossom realized. "I really hope Dexter's planning on getting in-touch with Foster's Home...if they don't shoot _him_ on sight first..." Turning to Ben, she looked for a little bit of credit. "So...we beat them, even though you made them sound unbeatable."

Ben couldn't believe what he was hearing right now. Blossom didn't come off as the one to be snarky about anything like this. "It was a first wave. That whole thing was a first wave. And the only means we had to win cleanly...is now fried." Ben told her. "Planet Fusion is gonna take at least a month to get here, this was just their appetizer or something, and until we can figure out better strategies, we're nowhere closer to beating them than we were when behind those barricades."

"How do you know it's only a month?"

"I got to know from Mandark." he said. "Even if he didn't tell me, he wouldn't have sent me to the start of the invasion, but a bit before so we can prepare."

"Then what are you expecting?" Blossom said sounding the most bossy. "We've got a month. And we're _going to prepare_."

Though her tone could have used some work, Ben understood completely, and any of the doubts he had were squashed back down. They could focus on the transducer later; they had another job to do before that. They then focused on reconvening with the team at Dexlabs.

* * *

He knew to expect setbacks. It was a measure that he had grown accustomed to as a practitioner of the sciences and mechanical technologies. That quote from Thomas Edison, no matter how little respect Dexter had for the man himself, rung true in the face of accepting a failed experiment. But whenever things were on the line, when the world would depend on him, he was far more arrogant and demanding for proper results. He couldn't accept a screw up.

But here, in front of him, was a scenario where he couldn't fault this team of heroes. They had risked life and limb to take care of this test wave of fusion spawns, did everything in their power to make sure that they could make a good impression towards "Lord Fuse". And to do this, they were forced to act upon an unforeseen circumstance, and the loss of a major advantage.

The damage done to the imagination energy transducer.

"Oh no." Dexter softly spoke, realizing the gravity of this turn of events.

"Yeah." Ben said just as softly, guilt present in his eyes alongside Blossom. The other two girls looked concerned about what this meant, and Jack stared with a glare at the damaged device despite dripping with fusion matter, unaware of the device's true significance. But Ben and Blossom were well aware. "Is there anything you can do to repair it?"

"Of course I can repair it, and replenishment will be...difficult, but not impossible." Dexter said, leading them on with a descent into a negative tone. "But I cannot guarantee a quick reconstruction. This may take months, perhaps even a year, before it can operate at a full capacity. And that prediction assumes that Dee Dee will not infiltrate this lab again..."

Rolling his eyes, Ben tried moving on from that conversation. He had heard everything he needed to. "Okay, look, the point being that we need to figure out our next steps after this."

"Like I said. We've gotta prepare, right?"

"It can't just be that, though." Ben argued. "Not only do we have to start manufacturing solutions for weapons, not only do we have to recruit people, but don't we have to call people? Notify everyone?"

"We actually talked about that while you were recovering." Blossom said, cuing Jack to step forward and join in on the discussion. "We weren't able to come to a good decision."

"All I can say is that this world has become much more complicated. Though, as a Prince myself...I would strongly advise contacting your liaisons and leaders, and forming an alliance if possible. I understand your discontent with them." Jack added. "But in complicated times and the need to recruit, I say we must take advantage of the government here."

"An apt conclusion." Dexter said, having already moved away from the group to his computer. He had to bring in a guest. Tapping on two screens, a projection of a US Army General wearing an ascot and a clean olive green uniform with several decorated awards. He wore a pair of sunglasses to top it all off. Behind him was a tall meager man with a standard boot camp helmet, profusely sweating and sheepishly smiling. They got camera-ready... _really fast_...

"Everyone, this is General Specific of the US Army; he is also the head of the Department of Metahuman Affairs and Abnormalities...and that is his assistant."

"Hey General," shouted one of the Test twins from across the lab. "How're Agents Black and White?"

_"Doing fine, Mary, and getting ready to take a well-deserved AND timed break in Fiji!"_

"Who times a vacation?" She muttered under her breath. Seriously, who would do something so horrible?

"These guys got camera-ready really fast..." Ben leaned over to tell Bubbles. But her eyes were squinting. She recognized this person from somewhere. But where was it? It was a story she was reading...she remembered getting really mad about it...and telling her sisters, and then they got mad too...

"Wait..." Bubbles murmured, beginning to seethe with anger. "WAIT A MINUTE! I KNOW YOU! You're that S.O.B that terrorized that poor SHEEP!"

"Bubbles, please calm down!" Blossom pleaded. Normally she would be livid, but under much different circumstances. Now was not the time to throw a tantrum.

"No, girls, he's an idiot!" Bubbles protested. This was more than just about the sheep. To her, trusting this guy with spreading the word to the right government channels would mean suicide for any counter-invasion plan.

But Dexter, with a bit of foresight in this regard, reasoned his appearance better. "He is also Mandark's contractor for military arms and technology. And for the record, General, this is not about me selling out."

_"I figured as much from someone as high and mighty as you, McPherson."_

Behind his glasses, he rolled his eyes, pushing them up and activating that shining app. "I understand you have been watching the situation unfold?"

 _"As well as hearing all about the context over your NanoCom chat."_ Specific told the boy genius. _"This is certainly cause for a worldwide emergency, on par with the levels of that sheep running wild."_ He growled as Bubbles was frothing at the mouth at the mere mention of that episode. _"I promise to get this to the right channels, but you have to provide me, and by me I mean Private Public over here, with a full unabridged dossier on **everything** you know, don't know, and/or any people you know that might have some other ideas on what to know. UNDERSTOOD?"_

Turning around to face the alien hero, now a harbinger for salvation, Dexter politely relayed the question. "Well Ben? Do you have anything else you'd like to share?" He asked genuinely.

With a big sigh, he reached into his pocket to pull out a tiny flash drive. "Okay, now this is the part where you'll probably get angry, or want to kill me." Wow. He really did have more to share.

He put it in Dexter's hand, who immediately unstrapped one of his gloves and injected the flash drive into a hidden port. The contents displayed upwards in a hologram. He immediately began combing through them as everyone, including the General, looked on with great focus and awe.

"What is this?" he asked rhetorically.

"It's a list."

"I can see that, Ben. But tell me what this is telling me."

"It's a list of every countermeasure and hindsight that the people from the future timeline came up with for me to send back into the past." the alien hero explained. "In that, you'll find instructions to make weapons, how to infuse imagination energy with ammo, and most of all how to make Nanos."

Dexter jolted at the sound of that name. He had heard it when Ben was fighting in Townsville. He never elaborated on what they were.

"In short, they're the reason I was able to land harder hits on the fusion spawns today. These things contain samples of DNA mixed with inactive fusion matter, irradiated by imaginary radiation, and siphoned through the Lyoko subspace. In short...they can give me power boosts."

Ben was right.

They did want to kill him after he said it.

"WHAT?!"

"You had that on you the whole time?!"

"OCTI COULD HAVE BEEN AVENGED IF YOU GAVE ONE TO ME!" Bubbles shouted again.

"You already avenged your stuffed animal, Bubbles."

"Thanks De-"

"Not another word! This was valuable information and blueprints for a countermeasure several of us could have used today, and it slipped your mind to provide us with it beforehand. Jack had to step outside our shattered doors far too many times to make short work of countless spawns, when with one of these "nanos"..." Dexter paused as he read the contents of the drive, "he could have snared them all and killed each of them without a fight!"

"The same goes for us, Ben!" Blossom chastised the alien hero too. "That would have made for a better diversion!"

Unlike the Powerpuff Girl, Samurai Jack found himself disagreeing with Dexter's assumption. From what he could gather from his battles, the spawns infamously adapted very well to the surrounding environment, adding to its strength. He would have still had to fight that Techwing and the hordes as they came because the more times he fought them, the more they would adapt to his battle strategy.

"Dude I currently have only four of these little guys, and most Nanos require a fusion matter sample from a Fusion doppleganger! Sure, you could try to make one from collecting spawn matter, but the process wouldn't be as fast! We were on the clock to save a park! We didn't have time!"

"Did not have time?! Ben, one of these apparent "Nanos" could have given me _SUPERSPEED_!" Dexter shouted back in frustration. "With that, I could have been able to build some of the inventions mentioned in this list, other Nanos included! You did not think to give this to me earlier?!"

"Of course I did! But a lotta factors came into the picture, specifically that these things were coded to MY DNA specifically! And to make a Nano requires a separate DNA sample and inactive fusion matter, and the powers that are granted to the Nano tend to be random at best! There was no assurance that we could get a speed power from Johnny even if we made 5 nanos of him! That kid has too many powers as it is!" Ben explained. "Furthermore, like I said, I only have four of these things and one's a Nano Buttercup!"

"I'm sorry, a Nano what-now?" Buttercup's ears perked up at the mention of her name.

"Yeah I do!" Ben shouted angrily for no reason, complementing her Nano. "She's very cute!"

"Uhh...thanks?"

 _"Private, do you have any frickin' clue what he's talking about?"_ he heard General Specific whisper to Public. _"Hell if I know, Sir."_ The army private responded back.

"Point is we were only able to get Buttercup's DNA and make a nano of her because YOU had a Nano machine lying in your storage unit! Those machines require imagination energy to operate and generate these things. And we couldn't waste any from the transducer, right?"

Blossom had to admit that he was right. "He's right. Not if we were going to let the Terrafuser remain active in the park."

"Fair enough," Dexter said, resolving this quarrel cleanly and professionally. "In which case, Dexlabs will get to work on manufacturing-"

 _"Oh, so_ now _you make weapons, McPherson!"_ The General shouted over the call.

Dexter promptly muted the call. "You know what I mean." He told the heroes. "I can look over this in a day and contact Mandark to chalk out a plan."

"There's one more thing we have to do." Ben said. "We need to know how we're even going to tell the world about this!"

"What I wanna know is how this is gonna affect school..." Blossom worried. Being the top of her high school class was tough enough given her public identity and responsibilities; "Are we gonna have to shift into online learning? We can't really do that when this war'll probably be a full-time situation."

"That is a good question." Ben said, also being a high school student, obviously nowhere near as high up as Blossom was. "But it's not important right now. This is so obviously gonna send nations into panic, and the last thing we or the Plumbers would want is an entire world on fire before it's destroyed."

Dexter looked back at the now screaming muted General, directing everyone's attention to a very close capture of his face. "This may be something that is out of our hands. Whenever an invasion or disaster is imminent, there are nationwide broadcasts sent out by the government to warn of the coming crisis. It is not an ideal way of information, but right now it may be the only legal way."

That thought terrified the daylights out of Ben. Their only possible avenue to spread awareness was one guaranteed to spread fear and panic across the world. Imagining the despair everyone would feel in that fear, the questions they would ask and cry over, the feeling of uncertainty would eat the human race up before the fusions could even lay a finger.

He couldn't let that happen. If they were going to fight a war, they were going to do it their way, and to do it their way, rules had to be broken.

"We can't let them." Ben declared, attracting an audience of his own. "Dexter, we can't let them do that. Not this time. There's gonna be even more chaos and panic in the streets. And I have a plan too!"

"I do not know if I can." Dexter lamented. "It is outside my span of control."

"Then can I? My ties to the Plumbers can help with this!"

"Assuming he has not hung up the call yet, Ben."

"Hey, it looks like the General's trying to get your attention."

"What-oh," Dexter realized, un-muting the General.

 _"-WILL PERSONALLY SET UPON YOU EVER MAJOR SECRET WEAPON STASHED IN NOWHERE AND EVERY FREAK MONSTER WE'VE COOKED UP AT AREA 51.5 AN-"_ The General stopped himself, realizing that he could hear his own echo again. He was un-muted. _"Er, um (clears throat) hmm. What do you want?"_

"Not me, actually." Dexter corrected the officer of the people, regardless of how half of various insults were just mercilessly thrown at him, but he moved out of the way to reveal someone who did have something to say. "But _he_ does."

"Specific!" Ben shouted in the room. He felt a speech coming on. "I wanna ask something!"

_"I beg yer pardon?"_

"You heard me!" Ben said...before pausing a bit. "Unless you muted me from your end, in which case I can repeat it for you."

 _"Just tell me what'cha want, kid."_ Specific said. _"And I'm expecting a copy of that dossier in less than 600 seconds STAT!"_

"That's the thing...we here at Dexlabs wanna trade."

Everyone went wide at that notion. Trade?! Was Ben seriously trying to gamble with someone that could throw every single metahuman and alien in jail if he so much as sneezed a funny way?! Was he out of his mind?!

 _"I'm sorry son. I think I **might've** left you muted. Because did I just hear you question my authority?"_ Despite a cartoonishly patriotic and happy-go-lucky exterior minutes before, the General was suddenly talking in a deep dark gravelly voice, clearly taking this very seriously now.

"Oh I did, and technically, my grandpa and more can vouch for me. Ever hear of the Plumbers?" Ben asked politely enough. General Specific seemed frozen, even for a video feed. It was clear that the mere mention sent shivers down his spine. "As long as the Plumbers keep this planet and its space sector as a protected space, I have the right to call for aid and a plan of strategy if I say so."

 _"Listen here, you brat."_ the General was starting to sound seriously ticked. Looks like Ben had pushed all the right buttons. _"It's bad enough that my people have to hold SECT on a leash from you and your organization of intergalactic freaks. I've read every report from every road trip you take, be it with your grandpappy, or your dearest cousin, and I know every exploit you take and the consequences on our larger world. And now when our world faces annihilation, you think you can tell me how to do my job?"_

Ben took all the blows from Specific, but none of them were taken to heart. "Frankly I hate that I have to tell you how to anyway. I'm gonna take a wild guess that your plan to inform the world will be through that warning system."

 _"It always comes through the warning system,"_ said General Specific, raising his voice even more, getting tired of this immature behavior, _"it's the best proven way to keep everyone safe and calm indoors."_

"Yeah, the blue screen, robotic static-y voice, and blaring sirens will totally get people to remain calm, especially during the apocalypse. No thanks, General." Ben shouted; he had a point to everyone else. Rarely did that blue warning screen ever inspire hope or optimism. "But this is where my offer comes in. Your military can help all they want, and I'll be happy to let the warning system kick in when Fuse actually shows up, but first and foremost... _I'M_ sending a message first. And I want the whole world to hear...and I want to do it now."

With that finally announced, all eyes in the room were on Ben. What exactly was he planning? What purpose would it serve?

_"No offense, son, but you're not trained in giving public service announcements concerning the apocalypse."_

"I'm not trying to give people a public service announcement." Ben shot back at Specific. "I wanna tell them to fight back."

And now, all eyes on Ben widened. He wanted to do _what_?! They understood that the dire circumstances of the future necessitated child soldiers, but now?! Why?

_"This is why we never should let a kid do an adult's job; your plan is insane!"_

"I'm the one coming from a dystopian future where the only soldiers in sight were children!"

_"Because it was a dystopian future, you daft teenager!"_

"I'm on thin ice in terms of explaining this any further," said Ben, trying his best to keep direct mention of the Kids Next Door out of his argument, "but believe me when I tell you that these children were more than well equipped to fight the Fusions, and most of these kids, some of them with the most incredible powers on this Earth, have been right under your nose without any acknowledgement. And I'm sure with Providence on their side with them, they'd be a greater force for good."

The General had enough of this. Even if at this point he was obligated to follow, he had to get this kid to see reason. _"And as for you? A walking alien army? I'm supposed to put the hearts and souls of America and the entire world in your hands?!"_

"It's not a task I envy, that's obvious, dude." Ben explained. "But it's the only way I see this playing out. I don't usually like doing power moves, General, but this watch isn't just some fancy Plumber merch. You know _exactly_ what it is, and more importantly, you know _who_ I am. And like it or not, I'm the only one with the bearings to wield it for this kind of job. The creator entrusted me with it, and I intend to live up to that. Age be damned, asshat." He spoke loudly and clearly. He was not going to take no for an answer. They had to do this their way. "So move aside and let us little kids handle this...or don't, and watch our planet die."

General Specific was in deep thought, completely silenced by the argument Ben set forth. He brought up reasonable points amidst completely unreasonable ones. What we was asking for was completely out of line, and something that was ethically compromised. But nevertheless, Ben's position within an interplanetary security force secured greater authority over his own. He hated to have to do this.

_"Public. Send them the frequency."_

"Er...yes sir."

_"Make no mistake, kids. I **want** those files."_

And with that, the call was completed, and the General was over and out. A brief pause took hold of the entire Dexlabs Laboratory, only for Buttercup to break that silence almost immediately.

"That was AMAZING!" Buttercup said, absolutely star-struck by Ben's rant against a US OFFICIAL. But to ruining her fun, both her sisters darted to meet her gaze with the angriest and most violent eyes. She reconsidered saying anything. "Uh...I mean...oh no-this is really bad-we're all going to _**die**_."

"Buttercup!"

"What?! What did you want from me?!"

"To have a brain when we ask you to!"

"Ben, I understand why you're doing this, but what you're about to do puts everyone on the planet at risk." Jack told him, stepping in as the Powerpuff Girls bickered. "We're not trying to draft people."

"They were going to be in risk anyway with the world ending. The Plumbers can only evacuate a fraction of the planet if we lose, and even if that happened Fuse wouldn't stop there. But we know he can be beaten with the things found here! That's why I'm giving the speech. If this General dude knew what he was doing, he would have realized that living beings like having a choice."

"THANK YOU!" Bubbles exclaimed, only for Blossom to shove her down too and silence her.

"The world needs some hope now more than ever. People in Townsville saw the fight before it escalated. That's gonna make them ask questions. They need something like what you told me. Or they may never move forward." Ben finished explaining why he was doing this, and Jack understood every word. It seemed irrational, and yet Ben was trying his hardest to give the world hope where the threat could only take it. He clutched his katana fiercely by the hilt. This was his mark left on the world, and he couldn't have been prouder to see people like Ben rising up like this.

"You've learned a lot." Jack told him confidently. "I will be honored to fight alongside you."

"Thanks...wait, alongside? But don't you-"

"Hey guys!" said a voice behind them. They all turned around startled, having almost completely forgotten that Otto, their second timeline refugee, was still in the building. "What'd I miss?" the bespectacled boy asked with glee.

None of them, except for Dexter, were happy to see him. They would've been happy if he had shown up EARLIER. "Where. The heck. Have you BEEN?!"

"Ben, it is alright. I sent him away." Dexter explained, jumping in front of the sharks of his friends that were ready to tear Otto into a million pieces. "He needed to work on finishing making a new body for his companion."

"Besides, I WAS there when Jack was fighting them indoors!" Otto explained, with all the embarrassment he had and all the confidence he could muster. "And it was SUPER COOL! You were like, swish swash, hooAH! And the Fusion Techwing was quivering like a little baby-"

"Otto, concentrate!" Ben shouted. "You still didn't do anything! We could've used your help!"

[Oh please, it's not like he's useless.] said a voice from the other side of the room, and the sound of light metal taps across the floor slowly revealed the now complete body of Larry 3000, strutting like he owned the entire laboratory.. [If he was, I wouldn't be back in one piece!]

It certainly didn't look like a million-first century-era robot, but the fact that Otto could pull together all those resources and repair him with such limitations...it really impressed Ben. The others were a little more amazed, seeing a robot from the future in the metallic chasis for real. The Powerpuff Girls were impressed, Bubbles in particular; Jack felt a little bit paranoid, possibly traumatized by all the robots he had to face in Aku's future. Dexter couldn't help but smirk. This kid's intelligence and mechanical skill was nothing to scoff at.

"Hey...you finally fixed him!" Ben exclaimed, stepping forward to admire the robot's temporary new body. "But...are you leaving now?"

"I've got to–we've got to–get back to the million-first century." Otto said, somewhat saddened by the departure. This whole time, he felt like he contributed the least, and due to the nature of the Time Squad, he couldn't offer much help now either. The most he could offer was a small little bit of info "We'll definitely keep in touch, though."

But it didn't stop disappointing Ben, still flabbergasted that they would leave _now_ instead of later. "When everything's gonna go great?! Why?"

"Time Squad reasons...so I'll tell you. This whole Fusion War was an aberration that we discovered not so long ago, and we weren't sure if this was history screwin' around again or if this would be the new state of the timeline. That's why he and I were in the future to begin with: we had to investigate the situation." Otto explained. "And luckily for us, the timeline's repairing itself now."

[Obviously, we were supposed to repair things soon after, but then I got mauled and decapitated, Five and Mandy found us, yaddayaddayadda.] Larry continued. [I wouldn't be surprised if the reason for Time Squad _not_ sending a rescue team was because our presence already undid the dystopia.]

"Yeah, no." Ben said. He had had enough of these random factors further jeopardizing his sense of heroism, let alone screwing with his understanding of time travel. "But does that mean we win?"

Otto shook his head disapprovingly. "I couldn't tell you even if I wanted to. And frankly, I don't really know myself. Did I ever tell you how time's like a rope-"

"Yes, you explained that."

"A lot." Dexter piped in, remembering Otto rambling constantly while Ben remained unconscious.

Ben continued. "So all you know is that you played some minor part in resetting the timeline?"

[Well we certainly played some part in it, but it wasn't minor!]

"Larry, just let Ben have his victory..." Otto whispered into the robot, not willing to start another argument.

[Fine...but we need one more thing to take back with us.]

"And what would that be?"

Larry pointed left of Dexter. [Him.]

And thus all eyes were on Jack.

"Was it something I did?" the Samurai innocently asked.

[ _Oh yeah_. We need you back in the _Edo_ period faster than Ham Alonzo's smuggling run.] Larry said, referencing Stellar Odyssey, much to Bubbles' delight and giggles amongst her sisters' more confused expressions.

Otto, knowing Larry could be overly blunt sometimes, tried his best to explain a little more kindly. "It's not something you did, Jack. We're just worried about what you _might_ do."

But Larry didn't care how blunt he was, and cut over Otto to continue. [Frankly, Jackie-boy, the last time you altered the timeline, you changed and even _undid_ several lives over a millennium. We're _still_ investigating how many time aberrations you've caused on your own, but the timeline you created here left the other one completely damaged. So despite your...heroics, you're still classified as a temporal hazard.] The robot explained. [However...time is less relative as one may believe, and the order of events and duty don't really apply to us. So I'll give you a choice. Stay here where we can pick you up later, or come with us and do less damage to the time stream. Your choice.]

Ben looked to Jack, who surprisingly enough was conflicted. Initially, Jack had been resolved to stay behind...but according to the time-traveling robot, his actions had created a major restructuring of the timeline...and any further actions would be unpredictable in their nature.

"I..." Jack hesitated, unsure of what to say next. His mind wracked for a possible way to fix everything. Whatever could he do right now? What was the right thing to do? But as he turned around, looking back to Ben, he realized what was needed of him. He became resolute, and ever the hero he proposed his wish. "As much as I wish to repent for my alterations, I must stay and aide these people. They will need all the help they can get this time, and that time is _now_."

[You absolutely sure you wanna play _hero_ again?] Larry asked, subtly annoyed. [Even after what happened last time?]

"Don't–uh, Larry, nix-nay on the Ashi-tay..."

[Now now, it's a legitimate question, Otto!]

But the insult left Jack undeterred from his wishes. "Despite what has happened, I can only move forward now. If you, or the fusions, wish to stand in my way," Jack threateningly reached for his katana, "I will be happy to remind anyone of what I fought for in their names, _including_ her."

With that returning comment, Jack affirmed his current place to the robot, who was now looking almost terrified. [Okay then...sooo, you're staying?]

Jack was silent, not bothering to give them anything more than an angry glare

[Okay, you _are_ staying. Otto, let's leave before he murders me...]

"Yeah, remind me to rewire your empathy-circuits."

[No can do, Otto. Now, let's go and pick up Jack.]

"So soon?"

[Well _obviously_ in a different time, genius!]

And with that final conversation, the two Time Squad agents beamed out of their lab, returning to their time in a blinding light, leaving our heroes awestruck as the beauty of their exit rose to a crescendo of epic proportions. It made some of them wonder how large their universe really was to allow for a secret Time Squad agency.

Bubbles, however had it up to HERE with the absurdism that befell her eyes all in the span of a single day. "To think a few minutes ago we were fighting green blobs of goo...and before that...making a time machine. Does anyone even want to acknowledge how crazy today has been?" She expressed with a defeated and mentally exhausted attitude. There was only so much of this random stuff she could take, and the only reason she remained without some kind of headache was because she still had Octi on her back with his stuffing still exposed and hanging out.

They would have pondered on their questions concerning the Time Squad further, and naturally avoided Bubbles' venting. But just then, an alert came from Dexter's NanoCom...and it must've been information for the ages if it surprised him that much. "Everyone?" Dexter said, facing an entire laboratory filled with blank stares in the crowd, but the silent glares of concentration in front of him. He raised his NanoCom with his left arm, pressing a button and projecting an encrypted message. "The government representatives...they were genuine. Ben...they gave you a channel."

You could have heard a pin drop, but you couldn't have heard everyone's eyes dilate and their jaws drop open with pure unadulterated joy. They really managed to do it. Their victory began here!

Even Blossom was considering breaking her language policy. "H-Holy...HOLY SHI-"

"Language!" Buttercup said with the most mischievous grin on her face, but she was also antsy, barely containing her own excitement. Bubbles was jumping up and down, running into Ben for a giant hug. Ben, on the other hand, was too much in shock and narrowly avoided Bubbles' hugging attack. She fell flat on the floor. Jack on the other hand was just as flabbergasted as the scientists behind him. This meant Ben was going to get his wish.

He would be speaking to the _entire world._

"Just a few moments to decrypt the frequency–you may use my NanoCom, by the way–and you can speak whatever you wish. Just...if you are going to make an inappropriate joke, please leave me and my company out of it." Dexter said as he walked towards Ben with his NanoCom in-hand. "It is important to me that you understand that."

"Yeesh, why so serious, dude?" Ben responded.

"Oh you ask, don't you..." Dexter said. "I trust you will not embarrass yourself, right?"

"Dex, I'll be fine."

"Good." The boy genius nodded. "It is ready when you are. But...Ben, before you do this...you realize that after today...everything is going to change?"

"Yeah..." Ben said, with a huge sigh and butterflies in his stomach. "I know."

Using the NanoCom, there appeared two buttons: a blue one and a red one. As if the late 90s really weren't kicking in completely, Ben recognized that the blue one meant deactivating the frequency, walking away, and letting the military handle the worldwide panic. The red, his literal opposite color, would broadcast this frequency to select parts of the globe, where it would probably spread and gain a traction of lord-knows-how-many followers.

This was it. Today, the future was in his hands.

This mess started with the press of a button.

And now the future would change with the press of a button.

"Hello?" He began, wavering a little in his voice grasping the full reality of what he was doing. "Is this thing on? Well...if it is...then I guess I should say sorry for not calling earlier. Pretty sure every girlfriend I've ever had can attest to that...like Molly Yamamoto, Elena, or Kai...really haven't talked to Kai in a while..." Ben could hear Dexter face-palm hard. This was going to be a nightmare. But hey, at least he could finally call his Mom.

* * *

_"But...it's me. Ben Tennyson. You...might know me better as Ben 10."_

In her home, Sandra Tennyson was staring intently at the radio, hands covering her mouth in worry and surprise. For the past few days her son hadn't come back from that volunteer experiment that he signed up for. She was worried sick, especially since Gwen had disappeared mere months ago. She didn't know if she could handle another loss in the family, let alone that of her own son.

 _"And you've probably noticed that I haven't been around that much lately. I...uh...took a bit of a sabbatical...into the future...and the experiment went wrong."_ He continued. _"B-By the way, Mom, if you're listening, then I'm sorry for keepin' you waiting. Again, story of my relationship status..."_

"Ben..."

* * *

[COMPUTRESS TRANSMITTING]

 _"So...yeah, it went wrong. Or maybe it went right. I ended up traveling one year ahead of the present, and the next thing I know is that I'm in a dystopia."_ Ben's voice reverberated through the minor channels it broadcasted through. And this was where he decided to start getting into the details. Taking a deep breath, he began his story. _"There's an unstoppable force in the cosmos right now, and it's been traveling the universe for eons, consuming every planet and destroying every civilization it encounters."_ Ben shouted into the mic, dread dripping from his tongue, his spit, his voice. It could all be heard in the message alone. _"And it's finally coming here. Just today, Fuse tried to start the invasion a few weeks early, triggered by my return. But regardless, they were on their way here anyhow. I know a lot of you will have questions, but you can't panic. Everything about these things will be available to the public in short time."_

Within the walls and circuitry, Computress observed the message carefully, making sure there would be no interruptions or online hackers. Her prime directive at this point was to, quoting Dexter, "DO NOT SCREW THIS UP".

She would comply with all her spark.

 _"But here's the interesting thing...today we_ ** _beat_** _him in a fight."_ Ben said, his fervor of doom rising into hope. _"Today, we prolonged the inevitable. But we struck a blow that not many planets have gotten the chance to do! Yeah, it was a small blow, and it's only gonna get worse...but I've seen how bad this gets."_

* * *

"And a wise guy that I...literally just met today told me something." He continued. "No matter how bad it gets, we make the future our own, and if today wasn't an example, then I don't know what is. Nothing we accomplished today could have happened if we weren't prepared...but today we were! And in all of this, it's not just about the preparation, but the will to _act_...the will to _hope_." Ben looked behind him, facing Jack with a smile. The experienced samurai had taught him so much, and had given him so much hope in the face of armageddon. This was about giving that back to the world.

To inspire the next set of saviors.

"To all the heroes of Earth that are out there, and I _know_ you are out there, I just want you to do one thing: fight. Fight for what's yours, fight for your friends, your family! We're not gonna let these monsters take what they want from us, or let them change the course of history because of they think this is our weakest hour. _We're not going to be_ _wiped away from the face of the universe just because some **douchebag** named Lord Fuse is adding our planet to his antiques collection! _I can't have that, and I won't allow that!"

* * *

_"I know some of you have a responsibility to uphold."_

Among the countless others who heard those words, the complete roster of Sector V was among them, and Johnny was laying down relaxing in their seats, not paying much mind to the transmission. Their S.C.A.M.P.E.R was making its way back to the treehouse, flying through the skies to remain as undetected as possible. While most air force patrols could detect UFOs like them, they had special technology that could securely and effectively keep them hidden.

But they knew it was now a pointless gesture. They had to break one of their biggest rules to save each other. Providence now knew who they were, and with enough digging, they could dig up enough intel and dirt to put the entire organization behind juvie bars.

Their secret was now completely out.

Every adult. Every teenager. Every child. They all knew now who they were.

They felt doomed.

Then they heard Ben's voice over their comms.

Many of them tried not to overthink it though, because based on what she had overheard, the major alien invasion, even more dangerous than the return of these spawns. But there was something else about this rude awakening, and the sign of the KND's doom. Something about what he was saying was calling them to action, taking responsibility, the very thing that forced Number One to finally break protocol and rescue his friends.

Four, finally recovering from his nasty case of head trauma, walked over to Three's station while she watched, and tuned up the broadcast; now the message was relaying on multiple different NanoCom frequencies for the entire organization.

* * *

_"I understand if that means not all of you can help out."_

Walking by, a younger brother saw his entire family watching with worry and wide eyes. He snuck up to his older sister, and whispered, "Dude–sis, you should totally help out with that stuff. It'd be so cool!"

But the sister was less than enthusiastic, stroking her pink strand of hair back behind her ear. "You know I can't, Ray-Ray. Even if I wanted to."

* * *

_"Your idea of heroism probably doesn't involve fighting aliens."_

Whatever message was being sent, it was being broadcast on multiple channels, including Mordecai and Rigby, listening as a hologram drone was laying on the floor after the twin sisters stopped transmitting. But the guy on the speaker was right. They had all kinds of thoughts go through their heads as they continued listening: they never dealt with aliens. Their park was a regular run-of-the-mill estate. What would they know?

Well, those thoughts would be a major lie. Their experiences with the whacky and extraordinary didn't end with that disappearing fountain, and they knew full well what kind of dangers hid in the sky...or even the ground.

But what made this guy think they were qualified to fight?

* * *

_"But right now that doesn't matter."_

Among the countless others who heard those words, one boy and his Imaginary Friend watched intently, unsure of how to react. They had only wanted to watch some cartoons.

Neither of them expected to have been faced with an alien invasion.

So what were they supposed to do? Turn the TV off and stop listening?

Or maybe they could let it continue...

* * *

_"Right now, for those who can, if we don't act now, then what's the point of being a hero?"_

As Agent Six piloted the Providence Tri-Carrier back from Marzipan, Rex Salazar paid close attention to what Ben was trying to say. Ever since their encounter in Manhattan, the same event that brought the public eye to Ben's doorstep, he and Providence had been keeping tabs on the alien hero. But this was unexpected to say the least. Rex was aware that Ben was missing for a few days, and based on Providence's intel, it had to do with that tech company in California. But he just returns and starts playing alien Paul Revere? Was he trying to raise an army or something? He kept listening to find out.

* * *

"What's the point of existing and living at all?"

In the lab, Jack could not help but beam as he watched Ben give his fierce monologue. The Girls couldn't help it either; proud smiles formed on all their faces. The lab assistants, on the other hand, were flabbergasted. This was coming off as a little too dramatic for their taste.

Fassy was fake vomiting, clearly cringed out.

Dexter, however, was in a trance. Deep thought as he processed each of Ben's words with a passion and excitement he refused to show. This would be the age of heroes. He had the tools to make it happen for them, and they had the talent to rise up.

* * *

_"What's the point of every success, every mistake that we've made if it can't mean something in the end?"_

Mandark sat in his laboratory, listening carefully to this broadcast. He had his fingers tented and his mind fully attentive. He did not forget a face so easily, nor did he forget their voices. He knew exactly who this was. A delinquent from one of the three sister cities, rather infamous for fighting aliens.

While he had certainly considered the scale of this apparent invasion based on the events occurring in Townsville Park, he had needed appropriate confirmation concerning the true nature of this event. He reasoned to himself that staying in the shadows was the right move, seeing how Dexter and his friends would handle it. But a small alien emotion entered his heart, a feeling of shame, regret, all a tiny fraction of an overwhelming discomfort. Could this be guilt? A sliver of guilt for dooming the Earth to a fate for the worst? If only he had held his ego back, the EPC would work as intended. Planet Fusion would not be coming here at all.

He looked at the recording in the other corner of his enormous screen with wonder. How would this continue to play out? He began running numbers, quickly typing away on the large desktop. He had to know if there could be a predicted death toll based on what his satellite picked up of the heroes in the park. Based on their stamina and tactics, did mankind stand a chance behind their heroes?

He knew he had to ponder on this further. But perhaps assembling a braintrust was in order.

* * *

Pausing, Ben took a deep breath to finish. "Planet Fusion is coming. It's basically already here, and we're getting a chance to prove why our tiny blue planet gets to exist, why it has a right to live. That chance has come to _us_ , this is _our_ time." Pausing, contemplating everything he said...

...he ended on one last note.

"That time is **_now_** …, and right now...the hero…is **_you_**."

Ben finished his fervor, panting excessively. He had gone through one hellstorm of a three-day weekend...or whatever. And all of it came to fruition and was paid off in just under three minutes.

"Good luck, and get ready." he finished, turning the broadcast off. "Over and out."

Turning behind him, everyone bore a look of awe, completely speechless from Ben's speech. Their actual faces implied something worse, provoking Ben to think the worst.

"Please don't tell me you weren't recording..."

Okay, it couldn't have been that bad.

Dexter comforted with an apparent compliment. It was a speech for all time. "Nothing of the sort, Ben..."

See?

"But that broadcast was picked up across the world and shared by several different people...on several different channels...and your face or voice was on each one of them...regardless of our limited audience."

Oh...that...was that bad? To Ben, it was nerve-wracking.

Ben could have barfed at the mere thought of that. There was no way it could have reached that many people, right?!

* * *

**PEACH CREEK ESTATES - CUL-DE-SAC**

Peace and prosperity was usually the defining factor of the suburbs. The residents thrived on that sense of tranquility, treating their little cul-de-sac like a bubble of their own world. But as Ben Tennyson's broadcast reverberated throughout the globe, most of their residents were beginning to realize that such a bubble wasn't exactly...well...impenetrable. As soon as that broadcast landed, the streets of the Cul-de-Sac had went into complete panic. Having listened to the broadcast, many parents and families had made a dart for the exits, and some of them were stuck in their denial.

Three young teens were known for taking advantage of their deserted neighborhood at any opportunity. Anything they could do to score some jawbreakers.

But here...the Cul-de-Sac was completely wrecked. Panicking and pandemonium was never good for business, let alone a hostile assimilating invasive species coming in mere WEEKS.

One of them wore a sock on his head. And he was freaking out so much. He had curled up into a fetal position, rocking himself back and forth in an attempt to cope. "I can see it now! A complete breakdown of social order! A war of all against all! Dopplegangers, Ninjas, TIME TRAVEL!? Unspeakable casualties ahead will lead us to **DOOM!** "

"Double-D…you're overreacting." Eddy told him bluntly. "A lot." Even more blunt.

"It's the apocalypse, Eddy! How on Earth WOULD I be overreacting?!"

"Okay then…welcome to the apocalypse, I guess." Eddy could only sit like a grouch, treating this incoming alien invasion like some kind of afterthought. But unfortunately for him, Edd was tugging on his favorite shirt too much, so he began to think that _maybe_ it shouldn't be an afterthought. "Ed, you mind callin' Rolf for a Jawbreaker? I wanna talk to 'im about those Rangers he keeps around."

"oKAy eDdY!"

* * *

**BRAVO BEACH CITY, BELLWOOD - OUTSKIRTS**

Unlike so many of the listeners that probably were tuning in, he actually _did_ deal with aliens. He had just never thought that he'd be dealing with aliens that didn't have to do with Homeworld. What had happened with the Diamonds was still fresh in his mind, even if it had happened only almost 2 years ago. He remembered how he was able to convince White Diamond to accept her flaws, and to become good. His friends had always said that his real superpower was finding good in others.

But according to Ben 10, these new guys weren't good at all. They weren't going to be deterred by his optimism. It had made Steven question what he would be good for in this war at first. If these were the unstoppable and malevolent parasites that he had made them out to be, how could he be useful in this war?

Despite repeating that question over and over in his mind, Steven still kept packing his stuff. He knew that he had to help in some way.

Steven made sure to pack the essentials in _the_ Cheeseburger backpack, along with whatever classified for an apparent superhero costume. He was sure that his black star t-shirt and short jeans would do just fine, while also adopting his varsity coat as well. Remembering how long his hair had gotten, he had to tie that up as well.

He would feel like he had to sneak through the Sanctuary as quietly as possible, lest he wanted Garnet, Pearl, Peridot, or even Amethyst on his tail. But of course...that was two months ago. Things had changed since then. _Lots_ of things changed since then. The feeling of having to sneak out still remained with him, even after so long since he left.

Steven was all alone in his newfound crusade. After so long of trying to move on, it was like he was being reeled right back in. But...he'd be lying to himself if he thought against the idea of fighting in a war. It wasn't his fight, sure, but he felt...compelled to join. Maybe it was Ben 10's wording that made it like that, but if aliens were involved, his powers would most certainly come into use.

But he found himself wondering what would happen if his powers wouldn't be of use. What if his powers were too much or too little, just not being enough to defeat this Fuse guy.

Well, his dad always told him that if every pork-chop were perfect, there wouldn't be hot dogs.

After all, being descended by one of the most ancient races of aliens in the known universe had to account for...something...right?

Knowing he couldn't know the answer unless he found out for himself, he realized taking that risk was better than the safer route. So, moving towards the Universe Car in his new home - a gas station that was far enough from Bravo Beach City to be considered "independent", Steven Universe readied himself to drive away. He knew he had to head to Tech Square to do what he always did...and he knew that even if he couldn't do that, it still wouldn't hurt to try.

* * *

**ENDSVILLE - 666 COOLHART STREET**

It had never occurred to Mandy that she, nor Billy for that matter, would be coerced into joining anything they didn't want to. Mandy despised the idea of playing a part in someone else's game, and that being a game for her worst enemy...the antithesis to what she worshiped... _heroism_.

She hated doing anything related to the matter. The thought of it made her sick. She didn't want to help these pigs in human clothing, and she certainly didn't like being among them. Why would she have to denote herself to such a level when she could rule over these pigs like a queen?

But what good would a queen be without her kingdom?

As much as she hated saying it...she had to...ugh...help out. At least in order for her to get up close and personal with this resistance...and take it all over from the inside. Walking down the stairs with a suitcase ready, Mandy turned to her mother, who sat calmly on the sofa trying to cope with all the mass-panic was happening.

She expected a lot of things to be done. She expected order. If she didn't have it her way...lord help you.

"I'm going to go fight aliens now, mom. In my absence, as always, I expect my clothes washed, ironed and pressed, room cleaned, the black socks color-coordinated, my goth metal posters framed, the house refurbished, my gun array armed and ready, my knives polished and sent to my NanoCom, along with my secret army of circus bears released onto the streets of Endsville to torment Irwin, WITH custom _white_ t-shirts promoting the oncoming alien apocalypse and enough bleach to soak up the guts and blood they spill. And I expect you to know that I want it all done within the next hour, and as always... _a_ _ll done by hand._ "

...well, she was already experienced in breaking bones anyhow.

She slammed the door behind her, walking out to prepare for war. Her mom remained completely still, petrified as always by her...high-maintenance daughter.

"S-S-Such a n-n-n-nice girl...s-s-such a lovel-l-ly daughter..." her mother told her, terrified out of her mind. As far as this poor woman cared, this whole alien invasion was just her way of escaping Mandy...if the girl would let such a thing happen. Maybe she could step in the way of a nasty and bloodthirsty alien to...maybe...escape Mandy...in her own way?

It seemed like a good idea at first...but then she remembered that Mandy would kill her for not sorting out her socks.

As Mandy walked out the street, she passed Billy's house, and for a while, she had her mind set on keeping the idiot and the bonehead out of it. But as much as she hated and DESPISED admitting it...

...a queen for the world did need subjects, especially ones of great value to offer to the world. Mandy hated having such optimistic thoughts. She decided to see if there were any brain surgeons in town. Whatever optimism she was feeling, she wanted it crushed as soon as possible. So, instead of staying the course...she jaywalked across the street and went to knock on Billy's door.

* * *

**LAS VEGAS, NOWHERE - AREA 51.5**

The military was already going into overdrive with multiple battalions being readied for deployment. General Specific had made sure to not exclude anybody, including agents of the CIA and the FBI. Whatever was going on, this alien invasion that was dangerous enough for a superhero to talk about, was pushing all the superiors to send everyone they knew into action. Unbeknownst to their superiors, Agents Black and White were already suited up and ready to head out.

The FBI had already begun deploying SECT, and Providence was already sending out their elite agents to convene in California. But for them, they had been stationed in the middle of Vegas, and had high hopes for a vacation for next week.

"Guess the Fiji plans can wait another year, right?" Black said.

"Anytime when you're ready. Anytime except for the next few months!" White replied.

"So why'd you say anytime?"

"I _don't_ know!"

Their banter kept them distracted from their surroundings, attempting to remain focused...which is why they were bantering...

Though to be fair, their current position didn't leave much to the imagination, hence this place's nickname: 'Nowhere'. The only things they crossed within the last 60 miles were a solitary totem pole just standing there, and a small house of wood belonging to a nice elderly couple. They had apparently gotten word of the upcoming invasion, and had been standing outside with their dog looking into the sky. The dog appeared to be trembling at the mere sight of the stars...and the couple knew it wouldn't be helped by what was coming...

* * *

**BELLWOOD CITY POINT**

"Guess it's time to get back into action." Kevin said, almost sounding reluctant. But that wasn't at all the case. Kevin would always be up for a fight, and punching parasitic aliens in their squishy faces. But this was deeper. Another alien invasion, mere _months_ after the DNAlien's secret invasion and the whole spiel with the Validus family. Some of this stuff would drive any normal dude insane. And Kevin, despite being anything BUT normal, really felt like he was teetering the line of absolute craziness with how many battles or wars he was roped into.

Ben had proven reckless in the past, and without his girlfriend to keep him focused, Kevin would be pulling extra responsibilities. Nevertheless, it did impress him how cool Ben got with that message over the radio. That speech was something else.

The former delinquent turned the keys to his holy and hole-ridden muscle car, and ignited his obnoxious engine to drive off to Siyenn City. His spare Plumber badge identified the signal coming from Tech Square. That was where he guessed the rendezvous point was. It'd be a long drive, but he'd do anything to make sure Tennyson didn't screw up without him.

* * *

As all of this was happening, Ben failed to imagine how the entire world could have reacted to his speech. Was this even a good idea? Should he have really insulted a U.S General?! Maybe this was a bad idea after all! What if more people were left panicking even more?!

"Well...just minutes after you finished...the Warning Announcement started playing on every public system, televisions included. They did not bother waiting until the end of our preparation period...but I have yet to hear or see any reports concerning looting, rioting, or pandemonium." Dexter said, "I guess you were both right."

"How do I know if I was right?" Ben expressed with a great deal of fear. He still had so many things unresolved in this situation that he couldn't understand. A lot of questions still rocked his mind. Like how would Fuse adapt to their preparedness? How would Finn and Jake come into this war? How or when would Jack go home? Would the transducer ever be repaired?

"You will not." Dexter admitted, being as objective as he could. "But if I have confidence in your words, and I do, then I have faith in them."

"This army could literally amount to a bunch of screw-ups for all we know..."

"Ben, this whole thing started because my sister screwed up...again. Maybe it was a fluke, but without you we would not have been able to catch one." Dexter said, only for Ben to raise an eyebrow. The alien hero clearly had no concept of fishing metaphors. "You were right...I should have treated her better in that instance...but if today has taught me anything...aside from drastically updating my security protocols, it is to have confidence in the unlikely." Ben understood that last part that, nodding in approval.

The boy genius quickly moved onto more important matters. "Now, with whatever tachyons particles are left from our synchronization engine, I can use to reverse-engineer a contact channel to further converse with the Time Squad, especially now since they decided to leave..."

"Of course...fight the aliens to save the future? Nah, we need to fix a tiny anachronism for a tiny reason." Ben mumbled. "We will keep in touch with them, right?"

"As much as I am to agree with Ben on the front of Time Squad's illogical practices, we _will_ require further information if a better future is to be laid out. Even if said information will be filtered."

Ben nodded, but couldn't help but ask Jack one of his many burning questions. "But Jack, you really wanna stay behind?"

"Until my work is done." Jack admitted. "It's not just about this war for me, but I feel an urge to watch this generation of young people you've called forward. I want to see them become the heroes you were confident in...the hero that I am confident in... _you_ , Ben Tennyson."

The samurai's smile radiated more light and peace than a thousand suns ever could. It filled him with the same hope as it did before, and with what was coming, he knew he could count on him more and more.

Behind them, a buzzing ringtone came from Blossom's NanoCom, which she pulled out as her sisters jumped over to see who was using their emergency hotline. Luckily, it wasn't the mayor, who they really didn't want to explain the damage in the Park to, but their dear father Professor Utonium.

The dear Professor Utonium looked frazzled and stressed out of his mind over the video feed.

"Girls! Girls, are you okay?!" The Professor shouted over the NanoCom, a static noise filling his house behind him. Clearly he had watched the broadcast, and was completely informed about the upcoming invasion. It made him realize the fierce and exhausting battle he sent his girls into. "Were any of you hurt or infected?! Any bruises?! Anyone?!"

"Professor, we're fine-"

"No, not all of us!" Bubbles exclaimed, jumping in from the right side and shoving her sisters' faces out of the way. She pulled out her stuffed animal and "LOOK AT WHAT THEY DID TO OCTI!"

"OH MY GOD!" The Professor exclaimed, horrified by the mutilation Bubbles' stuffed animal had went through. There was no time to lose, he reached further into the NanoCom camera. "Get Octi back the house as soon as you can! I'll try to save him!"

"Holy crap, HOLY CRAP!" Bubbles exclaimed screaming, bolting off and smashing right through Dexlabs' metal shutters. There was now a giant gaping hole, letting in the setting sunlight, and Dexter's chagrin had had it up to here with this crap. That metal was supposed to be a titanium-promethium alloy! Stronger than the surface of a diamond! How did she just break through it?!

"Oh boy. Blossom, lemme chase her before she has an aneurism over stuffed-animal surgery." She told her older sister. "It's been fun, guys. See you on the front lines!" She said as she bolted out the same hole that Bubbles punctured through the shutters.

That left Blossom waiting to catch up. With a deep breath, she bounced off the floor and began flying, noticing the lab assistants cleaning up the mess that this event left Dexlabs in, with the Test sisters on their NanoCom, surely to call Johnny. But none of them paid much attention to her or the heroes circled around Computress's main monitor. Just as she was about to float out, Dexter called her.

"Blossom. Make sure to tell the Professor to start arming and shielding his house." Dexter asked kindly and softly. "I can offer to provide containment shield generators if need-be."

"Sure thing. I'll pick them up tomorrow from you."

"You're welcome," Dexter responded, still a little nervous. With a deep intake of air, he then exhaled and asked one final question. "Can we count on you to keep the peace? And to be ready?"

"When the time comes? We'll be there. For sure!" Blossom kindly told Ben as she was already in the air, floating before following her sisters out the same hole in a brilliant pink light, ready to go back home to the Professor.

"Yeah...that time is now." Ben reminisced, reflecting on Blossom's words, thinking about what he said to the world. But there was no more room for stalling. It was time to get ready. "So, how about we start getting ready?" He said as he, Jack and Dexter approached Computress's monitor.

"And..." Dexter began, drawing on for long enough for Ben to think he would act pessimistic like Mandark. But to his surprise... "where do you suggest we begin?"

He did not.

Ben gave a small smirk, knowing now that whatever chance laid before them, it was now in their control. Stepping forward, and taking his place in this war, Ben Tennyson began with the most simple of beginnings.

After all, it was a war. It could only be so simple in the beginning. From here on...

"How about with some of these things I got on this USB?" Ben offered, pointing to the flash drive still stuck in Dexter's glove. "Major note, though, don't try to make anything on here cute or cuddly, got it?"

"Why would you assume I would do that?"

"Eh...call it superstition."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEVELOPER'S JOURNAL: The Time is Now...
> 
> This chapter concludes Volume 1 out of 6 in this fanfiction, dubbed "Fate" collectively. The next volume will be called "War", anthologizing a few key parts in the war to help build on characters and the world that I've had to set up. It's essentially going to be a filler arc except with actual meaning to it. Plot elements introduced there will reverberate throughout the story, and I'll be introducing a very special bunch of characters in this arc as well. They accompass characters from the modern age of CN, as well as others that I may not be allowed to do, but will probably do anyway.
> 
> And while I'm here, my best wishes go out to Tom Kane and his family. For those who might not know, our beloved Professor Utonium and HIM suffered a stroke about 4 months ago, and it impacted the speech centers of his brain, which is...not good at all. I'm hoping that the worst subsides and he recovers. Our hearts go out to you, Mr. Kane. I hope you get well.
> 
> NEXT CHAPTER: Lame Imitation
> 
> -end tran-
> 
> TOWNSVILLE CITY HALL - FUDDGATE PENITENTIARY
> 
> W-wait, are we still going?
> 
> Oh...oh, okay.
> 
> The shrieks and cries of the prison from whatever had transpired outside made it impossible for him to get a minute's rest. He did not particularly enjoy such chaos, especially in an environment meant to breed chaos. He usually thrived on it. The pitiful humans always were so enjoyable to watch as they fled in terror, resembling actual fleas. So tiny and insignificant that their tininess and insignificance mattered not in the long run, the long run that mattered to him.
> 
> Footsteps approached his cell, footsteps that lacked care or incentive to care for the sake of caring. His turbaned head, which he was finally allowed to keep on in jail, turned to face a prison guard with an unshaven neck and face, with bloodshot eyes and a sagging poster emphasized by a noticeable ponch. His prison guard uniform reeked, and it captured how pitifully he viewed his own job.
> 
> "Some sorry moron called for your temporary parole, works for Mandark Industries." the guard said with utter disgust. He didn't want anything more to do with this piece of simian crap any longer. "There's an alien invasion or somethin', no one pays me 'nough to know, and they wanna start formin' a braintrust. Said somethin' 'bout a pitch to Dexlabs."
> 
> The mutated ape's own bloodshot eyes widened with interest, for that is why interest plagued his mind and widened the eyes. For too long he had beaten, humiliated, called a liar, for reasons that failed to grasp the concept of a liar, conditions far more humiliating than he could imagine, and beatings too much to bear for his small but powerful body. But now, it was his time.
> 
> "I admire your bluntness, as you realize that bluntness is admirable and necessary for the situation at hand. It is a dire situation, I can assume, and only I can assume of the threat that awaits us being such a dire situation. Your reaction indicates such that it is a threat that only I, Mojo Jojo, could have predicted, and thus I have countermeasures for countering this opposing threat that opposes us, for you see-"
> 
> "Could ya just shut up and get the hell outta here?!" the guard aggressively requested. "I don't like bein' late for dinner, monkey."
> 
> The mutated ape growled for this guard's insolence, wanting so much to attack or kill him now, but this insolence was guaranteeing not only his escape, but his resources to help overcome the threat of Planet Fusion, of which he studied so long ago and people refused to listen to his pleas for preparation. Now, the world would see the genius savior and leader that was Mojo Jojo.
> 
> "Gladly." the evil genius concurred. He began walking out of his cell, pacing himself as fast as he could, readying himself for the war that was surely upon them.
> 
> -end transmission


	7. BUMPER: A Tour of California

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> INTER-MISSION BRIEFING

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEVELOPER'S JOURNAL - SUPPLEMENTARY
> 
> Unfortunately, no this isn't Chapter 7. But it is something worth reading.
> 
> So if you've been following this story for a while, you've probably noticed that there are a few anachronisms in the world of the Cartoon Network Universe. I do have an explanation in mind, but for now, let's just keep it at me having to make certain calls when it comes to merging the worlds of so many Cartoon Network shows, as the majority of them were produced independently from one another.
> 
> But I also realized it wasn't entirely fair to you guys, who might not be able to keep track of worldbuilding and expository content.
> 
> So, I've come to a decision that I am probably going to regret in the future, specifically in terms of the style and genre. I am going to have, between each 6 chapters, a little cutaway bumper that informs you on the map of this world. This will give me the chance to clarify all things that you might be confused by when it comes to my writing (Honestly I don't blame you. My English isn't the best...which is ironic since it's my first language.)
> 
> The reason why I was so apprehensive of this idea at first was because of the tone it might cast over the rest of the story. Informational bumpers like this are a staple of certain anime like Attack on Titan and My Hero Academia, but with this story's subject matter leaning closer to AOT, I feared that these bumpers would create a "history-book" vibe to it. Y'know, like these alternate history stories people write where they go in-depth into the layout and politics of the war.
> 
> What's problematic about that approach for me is that it can be a very adult motif, one that can strip the story of any fantastical elements by grounding everything into hard square reality. Furthermore, most fellow FusionFall stories implement a personal touch into their work. Granted, by focusing on the entire cast of NPCs and the larger CNU, I haven't made this job easy for myself. But come future chapters and the personal touch will be essential, just as it was essential with Volume 1.
> 
> But I guess that's a bunch of superstition. Right now, enjoy reading the layout of the setting of my story. Be ready for even more creative liberties than seen in the OG Game, because the Map I created here is vastly different compared to that of the original or remakes. This map also comes with nice little exposition blurbs, all of which are set One Month before the Time Travel Experiment and thus two months before the invasion begins. I will be listing heroes that claim these areas or districts within each city. As the story moves forward from this bumper, heroes covered by a [SPOILER] tag will be revealed as they claim positions throughout the war and beyond. For future stories outside of FusionFall, it's also very possible that you'll be seeing this bumper more than once and with updates.

**MAP OF TURFS**

**The Sister Cities - CALIFORNIA**

* * *

**SIYENN:** The largest of the three Sister Cities situated in the Western state of California, Siyenn City is a melting pot of countless businesses, families, and liveliness, all enhanced by the ever-growing pursuit of innovation. With a multitude of heroes, technological corporations, child geniuses, and casual life, this city is not only fortified, but ensured of a brighter tomorrow!

 **TECH SQUARE** **\- Dexter McPherson, Simon Astronomonov;** Once Siyenn Square, it was rechristened as Tech Square in honor of the astounding technological achievements transpiring there. Home to partnering and competing companies, Dexlabs and Mandark Industries, Tech Square has become the center of innovation and impossibility, inspiring countless geniuses by any standard to look sharp for a fine day for science!

_\- Dexter McPherson, founder, CEO, and Chief Scientific Developer of Dexlabs, has announced a private time travel experiment to the public! Seeking to send volunteers or a volunteer approximately one hour into the future! The seclusive but famous scientist reportedly received supplies from various suppliers, such as Goat's Junkyard, Maxwell's Plumbing Services (oddly enough), an unnamed investor rumored to be in Quahog, Rhode Island, as well as MIT and the CERN research project! Harnessing temporal crystals from stasis balls recovered from The Park, the Time Machine will lock onto specified signatures within the timestream, called "chrono-keys"! For any brave and daring volunteers, answer the call, for the time is now! And the test subject can be YOU!_

**GALAXY** **GARDENS - N/A** **;** This emporium of greenhouse greatness was marked as a sign of good faith and will towards the ecological salvation of the planet. Galaxy Gardens is a thriving plant and animal sanctuary for all to enjoy, and though some might denote it as a simple zoo, Dexlabs has announced its intentions to study plant-based solutions to climate change and other potential problems facing the planet.

 **STEAM ALLEY - [SPOILER];** Though the most economically staggered of the city, this district, nicknamed "Steam Alley", held an astounding position as home to leaders of the automotive and energy industries, such as that of the Rainbow Factory and WERK Co. Though with the rise of tech giants like Dexlabs and M-Industries, it's not in that great shape anymore. But before its time, Steam Alley saw rise to oil trade tycoons such as Boss Franklin Fullbright, and even renowned bio-engineers like the late Rafael and Violeta Salazar.

_\- Homeland Security agency Providence have been spotted in the area, more than likely in the hopes of opening a city-based installation. Though many people are feeling safer already, some have objected for opposite reasons, as well as the plans not offering any economic resurgence to Steam Alley._

**MOREBUCKS TOWERS - [SPOILER];** As part of a housing initiative with the Morebucks Corporation, namely on the behest of Jennifer Morebucks, the city looks to open more housing options for those in the middle class or lower. Using the latest advancements in technology from Mandark Industries, the construction of these houses will be sped up to a considerable rate. The future looks bright for what used to be a normal everyday district.

_\- Ms. Morebucks, a former supervillain, made a clear and distinct threat to her markets and shareholders that if they did not invest in the project, she would have them evicted from their houses and would use them for menial purposes. The shareholders were almost immediately confused by the nature of this act, wondering how a threat such as that could be fueled by a genuinely noble and thoughtful initiative. They all chalked it up to an ulterior motive on her part. Nevertheless, they all decided to fund her project._

**CITY STATION - [SPOILER];** The heart of Siyenn City is also the best way to get around town; the City Station district is the public transportation staple of the entire city, and even more as its Slider Buses can carry you all the way to Townsville and Bellwood. Its transportation-focused industry has made it the centerpiece for a cultural metropolis, with bright lights lining the skyscrapers, joints and hangouts for people of all ages to enjoy. City Station's refurbished place in Siyenn City was a part of Dexlabs and Mandark Industries' massive technological initiative, building the massive Station Tower to serve not only as a hub for all passengers, but to also provide extra connection services to the entire district. City Station continues to thrive thanks to Dexlabs and Mandark's continued efforts.

_\- City Station High School would like to publicly recognize one of its own students, Vana Thunderwarp, for her bravery and heroic saving of Dr. Gale Spacebyte, a government scientist who would have been killed by a malfunctioning slider. But that's not all. The young anthro-wolf student immediately contacted Dexlabs and helped identify the issue that caused the malfunction. We at City Station High School value dedicated study and civic duty within our students, and open our arms to those like Ms. Thunderwarp willing to make a difference in this vast world. (even if our moron Principal is the literal opposite - Noah V., friend of Vana)_

**GENIUS GROVE - [SPOILER];** The innovation does not stop at the city, as the suburbs of Genius Grove are home to some of the most impossible things the world has yet to see. The birthplace and home of both Dexter McPherson and Simon Astronomonov, they both grew up with like-minded intentions concerning technology, actively working together to see their dreams come to fruition. It is here in Genius Grove where great minds not only think alike, but aspire to be _greater_.

_\- Shady businessman Benedict Uno and his delightful wards recently attempted to close a deal with Alderman Jeff McPherson, father of Dexlabs CEO Dexter McPherson, to open their delightful developments project. McPherson declined, much to the chagrin of Uno. There's been no official word on his next steps, though some say he may attempt to try again in Bellwood's Peach Creek Estates._

**ENDSVILLE - Billy, Mandy, The Grim Reaper;** Endsville may seem like the most haunted place on Earth, probably because it is. But behind a gloomy and shocking exterior is a community that thrives on liveliness and prosperity. No matter how many people try to escape our beloved town, Endsville is your last stop...to not die, but to...just come here, please. Please?

 **ORDINAL HEIGHTS - [N/A];** A calmer neighborhood for a calmer time, Ordinal Heights is a place to keep away from the various calamities of the universe and relax. Once you rent a house, you'll never want to leave. So come visit our little town!

_\- Due to unexplained bursts of gravitational fluxes and massive surges of radiation emerging from a [REDACTED], Dexlabs and Providence have advised that this neighborhood be quarantined and cordoned off until further notice. **For your own safety, DO NOT VISIT.**_

**CRYSTAL COVE - [Formerly] Mystery INC;** Before Endsville was dubbed the most haunted place on the West Coast, Crystal Cove held that title, famous for being the final place of activity from Mystery Incorporated, and infamous for giving the Ohio-born detective group genuine supernatural threats to investigate before they all vanished and (presumably) disbanded.

 **MASSACHUSETTS PARK** **-** **Mordecai & Rigby; **Founded by Curtis Montgomery and his lollilander pupil Stick Maellard in the late 1800s, Massachusetts Park has stood the test of time in blazing through history and struggle. In the center of the park lies the Maellard Residence, providing the area with a feeling of home and safety. Despite reports of the zany, unpredictable, the surreal, and worst of all, various reports of employee misconduct, the Park and its staff stand ready to preserve this historic foundation.

 _\- Last week was the 2-year anniversary for the death of Pops Maellard, the son of Mr. Stick Maellard and the then-groundskeeper of Massachusetts Park. In what could only be described as launching an entire acre of land into space, the Park was reported to have been caught in a battle between the forces of good and evil in the cosmos, to which Pops sacrificed himself. There has been no comment from the_ _Government-sponsored Galactic Guardian Group (G3), or the Department of Metahuman Affairs and Abnormalities, who specialize in investigation of the cosmically supernatural. All the latter group had to say was that classified intergalactic contacts were looking into the aftermath._ _The Special Extraterrestrial Containment Team arrived shortly after to debrief all members trapped aboard the Park in launch. In this anniversary, many of the Park's staff were there to pay respects to their dear friend._

 **\- Goat's Junkyard, West Coast Division - Megas (Coop);** Originally founded in New Jersey, proprietor and former tattoo artist Scot 'Goat' Rienecker expanded his junkyard operations to the other side of the United States. In Jersey, his junkyard gained a notable reputation for housing a vast array of salvaged technology, with many complaining simply because the city would be destroyed by robots and aliens before they could visit. Goat's Junkyard is the place to go if you're looking for off-hand items and re-engineered technology, no matter how illegal it might be!

* * *

 **TOWNSVILLE:** \- **Powerpuff Girls;** The City of Townsville! A safe haven for all, a flourishing and lively populace, a loyal and brave community, and home to the world's youngest and greatest trio of superheroines! This fine city has been under their protection for 10 prosperous years, and the skies have never been brighter since. This fine city is a place to go to see hope before your very eyes. Ignore the high insurance rates and outrageous crime waves, because the Powerpuff Girls will always be there to save you in the City of Townsville!

_\- People are still worried for the health of the middle Powerpuff, Buttercup Utonium, who suffered a major blow during a battle with the evil Mojo Jojo. The Powerpuff was smacked far off into the Pacific Ocean, and hadn't turned up for a full week. The green Powerpuff returned to her family a week after her disappearance, but has refused to offer any knowledge or word on what happened to her during her absence. We wish our toughest fighter the best in health and spirit as she continues to keep the city safe!_

**\- Townsville Square - Jenny Morebucks;** A bustling shopping industry incarnate, this plaza is at the heart of the city and maintains its great variety of malls, studios, and more, with the trademark location of the Sunken Super-Mall, this is a center for consumerism, and we invite YOU to find everything you'll need and want.

\- _With the retirement of her father, Oliver Morebucks, young heiress Jennifer Grace Morebucks has since taken over his place as head chairwoman and CFO. Having been in this position for about 4 years now, Morebucks has brought the company into several disputes over acts of corporate greed, villainy, and subversion of ethical...anything, things that were mostly avoided by her lack of ownership in the company when she started her career in villainy. Morebucks has yet to recuperate from the low financial position and brand image the "Princess" has put them in, though Jennifer herself has ceased most villainous activity in recent times._

 **\- Townsville City Hall - The Mayor of Townsville;** The headquarters of Townsville's government is a dedication to triumph and might in the face of hardship. Here lies the Mayor's office, and the Mayor himself as he guides Townsville through times of despair, thanks in part to our terrific triplets that the Mayor dispatches to handle situations. It's because of this landmark that this fine city has stood tall and never backed down, even when a giant monster knocks it down.

_\- Just today, the Mayor announced the undoing of his latest decree: that all pickle jars be made with paper lids. Buyers of pickles found their food to have been spoilt due to the poor standards of containment imposed by the Mayor._

**TOWNSVILLE PARK;** This local and public park is the perfect spot for peace and quiet, especially when the city life can be so overwhelming. Townsville hosts many of its local events and celebrations here, as even this peace would not dare be disturbed by villainy.

 **\- Mojo's Volcano - Mojo Jojo;** Before even the crime wave, Townsville has always seemed in danger, thanks to the massively slim volcano located near the Park. Nowadays the inactive volcano is under new management: The primate supervillain Mojo Jojo, who lives in his Observatory Lair planning and scheming his maniacal and destructive ideas for destroying the Powerpuff Girls and other villainous acts. However, the city of Townsville is lucky to see Mojo exercise an honor code when it comes to engaging our beloved metropolis, and how fortunate we are that it not occur to him.

_\- Following an incident that occurred in 2009, many citizens of Townsville have speculated Mojo's connection to the sudden appearance of green gooey aliens that manifested from glowing plant-like eggs. Speculation also arose from the East Coast, with many citizens of New Jersey identifying the spores to be Gynok, a plant-based lifeform from Saturn that once invaded on a Thanksgiving Parade. However, multiple reports indicated that Gynok was capable of speech, and could mimic objects living and non-living, abilities that were not displayed by these spores, which instead spawned blobby creatures that terrorized various cities instead. Many are wondering what this has to do with Mojo, but have not been able to get a word in due to the primate's limited parole._

**MARQUEE ROW - Gangreen Gang** ; This small but vibrant district holds a special place in the hearts of Townsville's greatest musicians. Currently the focus of the Gangreen Gang's album tour, Marquee Row's impressive auditorium famously held the debut performance of Sunny Bridges, the Atlanta-born jazz-rap musician that currently teaches at Atlanta's Westley School for the Arts; he has since gone down as a legend in contemporary music. It also was notable for holding one of the highest ticket-sales rates for concerts of the West Coast in 2005, thanks to a spectacular performance from J-Pop/Rock duo _Puffy AmiYumi_. Marquee Row is full of legacy and variety as it has quickly become the hot-spot for Townsville's musicians and many more.

_\- The Gangreen Gang are set to perform in the Sunny Bridges Auditorium this July, where they are also set to reveal a new member of their band. Speculation has arisen as to who this member might be, and some rumors report that it's a female backup player. Some have denounced this as pandering, while others have embraced the band's sense of diversity. Others less trusting of the band wonder if this is a ploy to pull off a heist, given their criminal record._

**-** **Harada-Bridges Records;** The Harada-Bridges Record Company is a Townsville-based label founded through a joint partnership between former musician/performer Sunny Bridges and Kazuo Harada, former band manager and possible kleptomaniac. Harada-Bridges Records distributes music from many such talents as the TrendBenders, Pizza Party, the Gangreen Gang, Hair to the Throne, Scream-O, and Puffy AmiYumi among others; it even allows for one-time titles, such as "Love makes the World Go Round", or a rather catchy cover of "Surfin' Bird". It also sells redistributions and collections of older albums, including the famous 70s group Shag Carpeting, Fist Pump from the 80s, and smaller names like Mr. Universe. Their headquarters is based in Marquee Row, the entertainment district of Downtown Townsville. The building is furnished with a high-end recording studio, in which much of the music they distribute is recorded. Due to Bridges' teaching obligations, the company is partly run by JoJo Melodytour, former manager for the TrendBenders.

_\- Famous rappers 'the CrewCrew' were recently excommunicated by the record company for their foul attitude and slanderous speech, and their apparent disrespect towards the memoriam services for Pops Maellard. They have since gone to social media to voice their frustration, only to lose several followers on all relative channels, Instagram in particular._

**WILSON WAY;**

**\- Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends;** Venture into our quiet and socially vibrant suburban areas to get away from the action, and find a place where the community is tight, trustworthy, and lasts forever. For example? This grand estate that has been a staple of the community since the 1930s. Originally the grand mansion of eccentric heiress Martha Foster, her home has seen a repurposing like no other over the last 60 years. Founded in 1954, the mansion was reimagined as _Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends_ , a place for runaway or outgrown imaginary friends to spend their time and look for new human friends. We in the Wilson Suburbs are proud to see such progressive community work continue for so long, and to maintain a lasting legacy across the country. Regardless of the nanite-related problems that have plagued the imaginary community, Foster's Home keeps its doors open to all real and unreal for refuge and safety.

 **POKEY OAKS SUBURBS (North & South) - Powerpuff Girls, Professor Utonium; **Named after the county Townsville is located in, the Pokey Oaks suburbs are home to many of the denizens of the larger metropolis, appreciating the quieter life contrasting the busy city ahead. In the Northern suburbs, you will find Poakey Oaks' High School, the Morebucks Mansion, the precinct for Townsville PD, and the abandoned home of former supervillain Fuzzy Lumpkins. In the Southern suburbs, you will find the Utonium residence, home to the Powerpuff Girls, Poakey Oaks Kindergarten and Lower School, and the Pokey Oaks highway leading into the larger Townsville city.

_\- Not to be confused with the Pokey Oaks county in Los Angeles, California._

**HABITAT HOMES - N/A;** A thriving suburban community defined for its rising anthro population, Habitat Homes is recognized as a place for...well, whatever it is normal districts do, because this area seems to be set on selling "we have anthropomorphic animals" as their only highlight, which is pretty exploitative. This suburb is home to the Charles Darwin Middle School, notable for having an overwhelmingly anthro-based student body.

* * *

 **BELLWOOD: - Ben 10;** This is no ordinary city. Enter a world beaming with possibilities, wrapped up in one of the most popular cities on Earth. Located within Delmarva County and founded in 1638, the city of Bellwood started out as a small town notable as "the most ordinary town on Earth". That has been proven wrong many times over. Since Ben 10 started his super-heroic career at the ripe age of 10, Bellwood has seen a massive amount of attention for sightings of alien life and activity on Earth, and allowed this small town to grow and expand into a bustling city in the same leagues as sister cities Townsville and Siyenn.

 **\- Bellwood Square;** The heart of the city and the home to many of Bellwood's landmarks, such as Bellwood Zoo, City Park, a museum, a mall, Madison Elementary, even a Brain Bank!

 **\- City Point;** Whoever could forget this small district, host of the annual Summer fair for 20 years in a row, several of which have showcased the Dizzy World Circus hailing from Townsville. City Point also houses the largest amount of alien activity in the entire city, with many wondering how so many aliens appear in and out. But no matter that, City Point is hailed as a place for diversity and acceptance of all lifeforms, no matter how secret.

_\- The Dizzy World Circus is set to open business in City Point this summer after a performance in Gateway City, Virginia; this will be the first time they have returned to Bellwood in ten years. However, brand image is being considered as a risk, due to the supervillain Zombozo welding his Ferris Wheel to the ground five years ago and making it near impossible to remove. Architects and engineers are still trying to determine how to bring the Wheel down, as the structure itself appears to be made of Promethium, one of the strongest and most durable metals on Earth._

**OFFWORLD PLAZA - Grandpa Max;** Seeing humanity's future in the stars, Offworld Plaza was setup in a partnership between Dexlabs, NASA, and Providence whilst being overseen by the Department of Metahuman Affairs and Abnormalities. Offworld Plaza is meant to be the world's first spaceport, with a Dexlabs-modified STS shuttle meant to be the world's first form of public space travel. The project has seen backing from several Bellwood residents, including Ben 10 himself and partners included, and several alien citizens amongst the population. This is being seen as the foremost attempt to fully engage Earth with the larger galactic community.

**BELLWOOD SUBURBS/URBAN NEIGHBORHOODS;**

**\- Madison Valley - Ben 10;** This mostly quiet neighborhood is close to the Peach Creek community, and is notable for being the birthplace of Ben 10 himself. The neighborhood has received a lot of attention since.

\- _Residents of this neighborhood continue to search for Gwen Tennyson, cousin of Ben 10 and former partner in crimefighting. Gwen had reportedly manifested something akin to alien powers, due to alien heritage in the family, and disappeared soon after a conflict involving the Ship-It Corporation and an invasive race of microchips. The search has been continuing for 4 months, and we send the Tennyson family our best wishes._

 **\- Gallagher Commons/Sector V - KND;** Home to Benedict Uno, this proud neighborhood prides itself of the progress brought about by its educational system, confident in the molding and shaping of young minds for the larger world. To that, Gallagher Commons also takes pride in its large park statue dedicated to the various superheroes of the world (though due to the lack of heroes in these suburbs, it has yet to be adorned with any holograms or statues). This monument, christened as "Hero's Square", has been the sight of attraction to many, though children seem displeased with the amount of attention it receives, but who cares about them, right?

\- _Bellwood Sheriff's Department received more reports of angry parents complaining about their kids' whereabouts after school; reports include children whispering secret codes and messages, sneaking out at night, raiding closets of random neighbors of varying ages, and mention of weapons storage in a treehouse. These reports have been dismissed as a case of kids being kids, and parents being parents. Though the mention of a treehouse caught their eye, as there are no reported treehouses in the entire Gallagher neighborhood._

 **\- Peach Creek Estates - The Eds, Rolf, the Urban Rangers;** Peach Creek Estates has been a foundation of the Bellwood suburbs for as long as it could remember, founded shortly after the city was built, Peach Creek retains its reputation as the most normal suburb in the entire country, even as the larger city stepped into the larger and more unexpected world. The center of our neighborhood lies in the Peach Creek Commons, a Cul-De-Sac with a loving community that never expect anything out of the ordinary.

\- _The Bellwood educational board was happy and elated to give a $100,000 research grant to 16-year old Eddward Zimintator, affectionately known as "Double-D" by his neighbors and friends, for outstanding scientific papers on the applications of nanites towards the reduction of cancer cells, and the correlation between nuclear energy and dark matter. Dexlabs and Mandark Industries, tech companies from Siyenn City, helped pay for the grant, and Mr. Zimintator was excited to have received the honor as opposed to the money. Double-D expressed worry that the large sum of money would be taken advantage of by his friends._

 **\- Bravo Beach City - (formerly) Steven Universe, the Crystal Gems;** Bravo Beach City, rechristened after philanthropist and entrepreneur Bunny Bravo, has a history spanning 2 whole centuries, beginning in 1814 with Captain William Dewey founding the city. The city has been under the protection of an alien team dubbed the Crystal Gems, who protected this sub-city of Bellwood for over 200 years since they arrived on Earth. This town has seen alien invasions of lovecraftian/angelic varieties and universe-ending catastrophes unlike any other, and yet it pulled through without the presence of Ben 10. That's worth a look-(#KeepBeachCityWeird - Ronaldo F.)

 **\- Grover Mill - The Amalgam Kids;** [REDACTED]

 **ASTORIA GROUNDS - The Saturdays;** Located on the edge of the Pacific Coast, Astoria Grounds was once home to reputable cryptozoologist Doctor Solomon Saturday and his family. After their mansion here was destroyed, the Saturdays maintained operations here by means of their blimp. Astoria Grounds has since seen a level of peace unheard of. We have great TV too, renowned for various movie production studios located right here, such as Sumo Slammers: Legends, Weird World (formerly), Tiny'Mon: The Live Adventure, and other great content!

 **BELLWOOD MOUNTAINS - Camp Kidney, Acorn Flats;** The Bellwood Mountains offer citizens a fantastic night-sky view, and a lovely day for campers. The site was recently chosen as the new location for several Midwest-based Summer Camps, such as Camp Kidney. Originally located in Northern Wisconsin, the Camp was relocated to the great Western state after dangerous reports of robots and monsters were coming in from the nearby state of Illinois, as well as various surreal reports from the nearby city of Elmore. Amongst the Bellwood mountains are the Pimpleback Mountains, Mount Blackhead, and a forest noted for various amounts of exposure to unstable nanites; said site is also reported to be a major hotspot for cryptid activity. Be wary of entering this Twisted Forest.

* * *

**SHARED LOCATIONS:**

**\- CITY SQUARE (Currently under construction);** As part of the Movement Ink Initiative, the Three Sister Cities of California are coming together under a united cause: to open new avenues of business and provide a safe and healthy environment for all. Meant to be the most technologically advanced area between all three cities. The Movement Ink Initiative will also see construction of a center studio to foster all creative and health-related activities.

* * *

**OTHER LOCATIONS OF INTEREST: (INFORMATION TO BE UPDATED BY DHAWAR AIRLINES) - (Ordered by Proximity to Sister Cities)**

**ORCHID BAY, SAN FRANCISCO - [SPOILER];** Arguably the second largest district of San Francisco, this beach-side town is big enough to call itself a city on its own. Renowned for its beach city theme and harbor history, Orchid Bay has been a cultural diaspora, giving children a welcome touch of life from all areas and ethnicities. Admittedly, there have been supernatural occurrences here and there, but it's not like an ice castle is going to rise out of the water.

 **SOUTHEAST UTAH - Rex, Providence;** **[REDACTED]**

 **LANGLEY FALLS - CIA, Department of Metahuman Affairs and Abnormalities;** **[REDACTED]**

**NOWHERE, LAS VEGAS - Agents Black and White; [REDACTED]**

**\- Area [REDACTED]**

**PORKBELLY CITY, ALBERTA - Johnny Test;** Alberta's least notable city, built upon the morally dubious legs of the meat-grinding industry, has seen a surprising rise in the extraordinary over the last five years, with various mutations and technologically influenced threats appearing over time. More often than not, a kid from our suburbs has to save the day, but it also happens to be his fault. For Porkbelly, things just seem to balance out.

\- _Congratulations to local scientists Susan and Mary Test for getting jobs in the states with Dexlabs! We'll miss you while you're away very much! Just don't blow anyone up and don't cause a massive chemical accident!_

 **MARZIPAN CITY, VLATAVA- N/A;** This small European city in the Romanian Province of Vlatava is well-known for being home to Mung Daal's Catering Company, one of the world's tastiest European cuisine menus. With their food and this city, you can never go wrong with your vacation.

_\- Mung Daal has reportedly taken up a search for a potential apprentice. More details are to follow._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you've noticed any inaccuracies or liberties taken with these settings, then I apologize for the liberties taken to make all of this work. When I started my story, my aim was to tell the most grounded FusionFall story I possibly could, which meant that to realistically illustrate the various shows of CN in the same setting and together, I had to change various tiny details (such as the location of Camp Kidney) or massive details (such as moving Steven Universe from the East Coast to the West Coast. I wasn't intent on simply transposing the map from FusionFall, which would have simply been mashing all the locations together. Each show has its own unique setting, some of which are integral to the shows' aesthetic. I wanted to honor that as much as possible.
> 
> Now obviously, scenic descriptions aren't going to be much help, but since I can't really draw out a map of the CNU's California here, I'd like to direct you to my associated Deviantart page: noahvilgaxsane (I really wish I could post URLs). If you look for this user, you'll find my account that I will, going forward, be using to help you guys out in terms of visuals. I might be able to draw the map and post it there.
> 
> If you've already searched my account name, you might notice that I've created a non-spoiler wallpaper for this wonderful project! Not just for FusionFall, but for the series I have planned as a whole.
> 
> And lastly, I want to stress the need to review. Reviews give guys and gals like me a sense of liveliness about our work. Reviews are the lifeblood of our continued dedication. I'm not threatening to quit, god no, but I want to make sure that I'm making quality content for you guys. Just a simple couple of words will do, and it doesn't have to say much that's meaningful. But taking the time to post and tell me what you like or don't like will give me the strength I need to make the best story for all of you. Reviews for my story mean the world to me, and I encourage everyone to do it when or if they have the time.
> 
> Thank you all for letting me give you the layout of the Cartoon Network World so far, and I'll see you guys in Chapter 7!


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